Namikaze Sephiroth's Return
by VFSNAKE
Summary: Sephiroth said "I...will never become a memory." after fighting Cloud Strife and it was considered a prophecy of his return years later. Now Centuries have past and it had yet to happen. Though what many don't know is the man's last name was...Namikaze!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1-His Return

Sephiroth felt his body dying. Too many attacks, too many wounds, and the loss of too much blood at the hands of Cloud Strife had done the One-Winged Angel of Death in. Their great battle shook the heavens, the Earth, and everything in-between to the very core of the planet. As he looked down from his slowly falling place in the sky, the man described as the "Ultimate SOLDIER" looked at the defiant cold eyes of his killer, and smirked at the blonde haired man.

Even if he died, even if his body entered the Life Stream, and was absorbed into it...the One-Winged Angel of Death would not be denied the justice his Mother desired. The woman herself Jenova, had called upon the only one hearing her cries to come forward, and hear her calling out for someone to help. She spoke within Sephiroth's mind when he approached her glass prison, practically commanding him to be her right hand, and to smite the guilty people living in this world. To be an instrument of his Mother's desires by unleashing her fury, her pain, agony, and rage upon the world through him to destroy those responsible for the pain Jenova felt at the hands of her captors.

This world wasn't done with him. Not by a long shot.

"I...will _never_ be a memory," said Sephiroth, as he felt his body disintegrating, and his remains scattering into the wind.

It was in that moment Cloud heard those words, he froze in fear of what that could mean for him, and the world in the distant future. Would Sephiroth come back? Were the words the now dead man spoke something to be considered a prophecy? A future threat to the world that its Cloud himself would not be able to stop?

Cloud hoped such a prophecy never happened.

(Time Skip-Centuries Later-Konoha)

The world had changed since that day when Sephiroth and Cloud Strife fought, as the world nearly forgot about their epic battle, and only spoken to children on occasion when it came to bedtime stories by Grandparents having it told to them by _their _Grandparents. At the moment, one of the few people having heard the story, and about the whispers of the prophetic words Sephiroth spoke before his death in that story was none other then the elderly Sandaime Hokage...now currently retired.

At the moment, he was watching his successor, the Yondaime Hokage working hard at the desk of the Hokage currently stacked with paperwork, and smiled knowing the blonde haired Namikaze was now understanding the _pain_ paperwork of this magnitude could be. Every Kage past to present from here in the Leaf, all the way to Iwa, and the Mist were suffering right now from doing this task of conquering this horrible evil.

And none had succeeded to date.

"Minato! Minato I have good news!" said Kushina, as she crashed through the doors looking at her husband with a glow that told the Namikaze two very important, and crucial things that made his spine stiffen.

One, his home life was about to become painful very soon for himself, and two...the last time Kushina was this bubbly they had done..._things_ that would have made Jiraiya proud.

Not that the Sannin would know of them due to Kushina beating the Super Pervert up into a Month worth of Hospital time before they actually did _that_ for the man's attempts at peeping on their moment.

"What is it Kushina-chan?" said Minato hoping this wasn't what he thought it was.

"I'm...I'm..._pregnant_! I'm actually _pregnant_!" said Kushina with joy in her voice, as she was going to be a Mother, and continue to keep the legacy of Whirlpool alive.

"Really? That's...that's great!" said Minato, who was trying to be ecstatic while hugging his wife currently dancing him around the room in a death grip of a hug, but deep down he _wasn't_ happy at all, and soon saw the grave look on the former Sandaime's face after Kushina left the room.

"This could be a problem Minato. The prophecy...," said Hiruzen worriedly with the Yondaime raising his hands to silence the older man.

"I know old man. _He_ is my ancestor after all and the prophetic words he said have never been forgotten within my clan. We feared this day since those words were first spoken. That one of our own would be his reincarnation. That _I_ would be his reincarnation when I was the last one of my family. That's why I did everything to prevent Kushina from ever being pregnant after we..._consummated_ our marriage and any other time after that. I was even going to tell Kushina I couldn't have kids in a couple of years and bribe a doctor to lie to support my claim," said Minato, as he slumped back in his chair, and let out a sigh while putting a hand to his forehead.

"What do you want to do? Your options are limited," said Hiruzen, as there were too few options, _but _they were there, and it was up to Minato on whether or not he wanted to even go through with them.

"I can't force Kushina to abort the baby. She's wanted a child for awhile now and I have been..._encouraging_ it to keep her happy. If she finds out I've been secretly trying to stop her from being pregnant while helping...," said Minato shivering in fear at the thought of an angry Kushina being vengeful.

"Yes. That would be a problem. I'll summon Jiraiya to come and see what he thinks of the your child possibly being connected to the prophecy," said the former Sandaime, as he left the room, and the Yondaime groan in misery at this new development.

(A Few Days Later)

"You're sure? You've spoken to Kushina's doctor? She's actually pregnant?" said Jiraiya sitting with his former student and saw the man nod grimly.

"Yeah. She showed me the pregnancy test and then the Doc confirmed it to me," said Minato, as he saw Jiraiya look grim, and knew things were going from bad to worse.

"I spoke to the oldest of all the Toads after sensei told me about Kushina's pregnancy in his message to come home. He's told me the prophecy regarding your ancestor will come to pass depending on the gender of the child. If it's a girl, then you're in the clear, but if it's a _boy_...," said Jiraiya seeing the Minato run his hand through his blonde hair.

"Then were screwed sensei. Kushina would _never _kill her child, even for the village, or the world for that matter. She'll defend him to the death and kill anyone that stands in her way. Even me," said Minato, as he knew how badly Kushina wanted a big family after losing so many of her kin from the Shinobi wars, and was practically the _last _of her own people that survived its fall.

"What if we were to put various suppression and restriction seals on the boy to prevent him from developing?" said Jiraiya.

"Hypothetically speaking in terms of Kushina's baby _being_ a boy? We could do that. I'd need hours of alone time with the child while raising him. What should be targeted on his body to keep the prophecy from happening?" said Minato knowing Jiraiya was better at this line of thought then him do to the child not being the Sannin's own.

"Everything. Target his growth. His height is another thing. Physical muscle coordination to keep him from reaching his maximum potential in that area. Mentality and intelligence is also another to consider. If we put seals on this boy, then they must be done with the single purpose of _crippling_ _him_ so the boy will be an average Shinobi, and nothing great like you," said Jiraiya seeing Minato flinch at that.

"Kushina will get suspicious if his development as a Shinobi isn't up where it should be considering just who his parents are," said Minato seeing Jiraiya scratch his head in deep thought.

"We could have the doctors lie saying there were complications with the boy and that his ability to be anything great like you or Kushina was damaged. We could even lie saying the seals we put on him will _help _in allowing him to be a Shinobi of the Leaf. She'll never know! Her village may have had Seal Masters, but she was never taught anything yet at the time when she first came here, and will trust you with them since you're my student," said Jiraiya, as he saw Minato was uneasy about this, but the prophecy would soon be upon them, and it was his duty to protect the village if not the world from such evil.

"There's more to it then that Jiraiya. The boy needs to be humble. Grateful for being alive and depend on those around him rather then himself. My ancestor was confident, a very skilled, and tactical genius that was beyond any of our comprehension," said Minato, as he saw Jiraiya's eyes widen, and knew what his student was talking about.

"You want there to be 'attacks' upon his person. Various 'attempts' on his life that will be stopped by the Leaf and make him feel a sense of loyalty for when he gets older," said Jiraiya, as he knew that this was a dangerous road to take, and on his students son no less.

"It's the only way Jiraiya. My son has to suffer for the good of the village and mankind," said Minato, as he didn't want to do this to his child, but if Kushina did sire a boy, then his son would have no choice, and suffer for the good of the world.

(Time Skip-October 10th-Night of Kyuubi's Attack)

"Is it done?" said the Sandaime, as he stood over Jiraiya kneeling down in front of young Naruto with the seals Minato left to put on the boy now in place.

"Yes. The boy won't become what the prophecy says he will be. We've stopped it...for now anyway," said Jiraiya, as he saw the Sandaime let out a sigh of relief, and yet there was worry on his face.

"Tsunade wants to know about the boy. Kushina died not that long ago and Naruto is the only thing she has left to connect her to the village," said Sandaime seeing Jiraiya wave off the worry he felt due to how close the two women were to each other.

"Tell her the Kyuubi's chakra was too much for the boy to fully handle and the Kyuubi killed Naruto before it perished with him," said Jiraiya, as he knew that it would make Tsunade leave, and never return to the village with this last act breaking whatever home like bonds his former teammate had with the Leaf.

"If she ever finds out I lied...," said the Sandaime knowing Tsunade would do everything within her medically skilled hands and power to make him suffer even if he was already dead.

"I'll handle that should it ever come up. Hopefully, she won't care by this point, and you'll be long dead with me having a foot already in the grave," said Jiraiya grinning at his old sensei.

"I sent a message to the Fire Daimyo explaining the situation about Naruto, the Kyuubi, and us putting our plan in motion to stop the prophecy from happening. We have his full support in this matter," said the Sandaime, as he saw Jiraiya nod knowing that having the village's Feudal Lord's full support was almost as good as being blessed by Kami, and one full control of the situation warranting that.

"Let me know if any of the seals break from Kyuubi's chakra should the boy somehow summon it," said Jiraiya before giving the boy to the Sandaime.

"I prey that day never comes Jiraiya," said the Sandaime, as he felt a tinge of regret in doing this to the boy, but the weight of the world requiring this one boy suffer to keep a countless number of the people in the village, and the world from dying snapped him out of it.

(Time Skip-12 Years Later)

Naruto looked at the Forbidden Scroll with glee knowing he had done the impossible for someone his age and believed his chances of graduating were assured. Upon opening the scroll, Naruto's eyes widened at the various Jutsus it held and skimmed down them for something he could use to impress his Chuunin Instructors to prove himself capable of being a Genin.

'What's this?' thought Naruto, as he made his way down the list of Jutsus to the "Hokage's Eyes Only" area in the scroll, and saw two envelopes with letters in them.

Opening the first one, he saw it was to the Sandaime, and was going to put it back when Naruto's curiosity to read it got the better of him.

And his eyes widened at what the letter said.

_Dear Sandaime-sama,_

_If you are reading this letter, then that means the sealing has been done, and the Kyuubi was successfully sealed inside of Naruto. It also means that this will also give you the means to put our plans into action to stop the prophecy surrounding my son from ever happening and give the village a means to hate the boy. With the damage done to the Leaf village, it won't take much to make them want to hurt the child, but make sure the damage isn't __**too**__ extensive that it risks the seals being destroyed by Kyuubi's chakra, and provoking the beast to cause further problems._

_Don't worry about the need to put the restriction or suppression seals on my son since I gave the designs to Jiraiya to put on Naruto to keep him from reaching his full potential, and stop him from becoming the monster prophesized to manifest itself into the world. I need you to put Naruto in the Orphanage and let him grow up alone with only you being around to support him in order to further keep his loyalty to Konoha. More importantly, to you since the various planned attacks you setup will soon be stopped, and afterwards will help ensure Naruto's loyalty to you._

_When he's old enough, make sure to give Naruto the letter next to this one after he's been properly conditioned mentally to understand that he __**had**__ to suffer for the greater good of the world. That all the pain and suffering we planned for him was for the greater good of the village if not for the entire world. He'll have to understand. If not...then it will be up to you, Jiraiya, or your successor along with Jiraiya to __**make**__ him understand._

_Sincerely,_

_Namikaze Minato: The Yondaime Hokage_

Naruto looked at the other letter sealed up with barely contained fury knowing what his once great hero, whom was his actual _Father_ had seal the Kyuubi into him, and conspired with the Sandaime Hokage his _surrogate_ _Grandfather_ of all people to cripple his own development. And for what? Some stupid prophecy that may or may not happen?

Slowly, Naruto opened the other letter to read its contents, and once more the boy's eyes were widened to their maximum at what he read.

_Dear Naruto,_

_If you're reading this, then everything has gone as planned, and you are ready to know about your heritage along with the prophecy that surrounds you. Back many centuries ago, there was a great, and powerful warrior named Sephiroth whom was said to have possessed enough power to split the planet quite literally in two. He nearly succeeded at one point for whatever reason that drove him to do it. That man's last name also happens to be Namikaze just like the two of us. He is in fact our ancestor, which all born of the Namikaze Clan are descended from, and are incredibly strong even by current Shinobi standards._

_It was prophesized shortly upon his death based upon the very words he'd spoken mere moments before his demise, that our ancestor would somehow one day return, bringing about death, and destruction wherever he walked. Up until your own birth, the prophecy seemed to be nothing more then an old wives tale used to scare, or entertain children at night like it was a bed time story. To be honest son, you were actually an accident, as I never planned to have kids at all, and had done everything in my power to prevent myself from having your Mother conceive a child._

_As for your Mother, she died sometime after childbirth, and was given the impression that you died during the sealing to give her the belief she would die to join you on the other side. I knew Kushina would love you too much to have let anything like what we planned happen and we just couldn't let her maternal instincts get in the way of the plan to stop Sephiroth from returning through you Naruto. For the greater good of the Leaf and the world...you had to suffer and still do in order to protect everyone._

_I'm sorry Naruto. I hope you see what we did was right and accept what we did._

_Sincerely,_

_Namikaze Hokage: The Yondaime Hokage_

Naruto looked at the paper, it was crinkling in his now shaking with fury filled hands, tears falling down his face, and anger rising from within his very _soul_ at the lies fed to him by the Hokage. The pain, the suffering, the hate they hit him with was for the greater good of the village, and the _world_? What a bunch of _crap_! it was like Naruto had just _asked_ to have the Kyuubi sealed inside his body, he didn't ask to possibly be the so called "prophesized return" of his clan ancestor, and didn't ask for the bullshit the people hit him with all the time.

"Naruto! What do you think you're doing?" said Iruka having looked all over the place for the boy and saw him there with a piece of something from the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing.

Naruto of course didn't answer him, but rather the boy slowly looked at his teacher, and made the horizontally scarred face man back away from the blonde. The boy's eyes were filled with anger, hate, and so many other emotions Iruka had never truly seen before in the blonde.

"I see the players in this farce are all here," said Mizuki, as he appeared in front of the two, and had a sadistic grin on his face.

"Mizuki? What are you doing here?" said Iruka looking between Naruto and his fellow Chuunin teacher.

"Isn't it obvious? I _tricked_ Naruto into coming here! The boy was so heartbroken over the fact you failed him Iruka. I just _had_ to give him a "chance" in becoming a Genin. Not that he has one with the way things were going for him at the Academy. Being the _idiot_ he is and not even realizing _why_ people hate him...until now," said Mizuki, as he saw Iruka's eyes widen, and saw Naruto's head down now down looking at the letter in his hands.

"No Mizuki! Don't tell him! You know it's forbidden to speak about it by the Sandaime's law!" said Iruka, as he saw Mizuki grinning, and saw Naruto shaking further.

"Ha! Please Iruka! As if anyone in the Leaf even _follows_ or _enforces_ that stupid law! The fact is Naruto, about 12-13 years ago, the demon fox Kyuubi attacked the Leaf, and was sealed inside of you by the Yondaime Hokage. The man died sealing the monster into your body and thus made you become the _monster_ everyone has claimed you to be. Remember the attacks on you? The one's on your birthday? Why people have wanted you dead? Its because you're a demon! It's because you're a _monster_!" said Mizuki, as he saw Naruto's whole body shaking with untold rage, but mistook it for fear, and laughed at the blonde's reaction.

Until Naruto stopped shaking and slowly stood up.

"You're only _half_ right Mizuki. While your wrong in me being a demon like Kyuubi, I am one thing that is far worse then the demon fox, and that...is being a_ monster_. A monster, who is said to be worse then Kyuubi, and will be your death," said Naruto in cold almost quiet voice that echoed throughout the area they were in and brought about a chill to the area.

"You? Beat _me_? I'm a Chuunin! You're just some demonic runt that couldn't even make a damn clone properly," said Mizuki grinning and loving how he rubbed Naruto's failures in his face.

"You can blame my bastard Father for that. According to this, I have had seals put on me to restrict, and suppress my true potential. No more," said Naruto, as he slowly rose from the ground, dropped the letter in his hands, and put his hands together to mold chakra.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" said Iruka, as he got his answer when Naruto unleashed all his chakra tearing off his upper clothing to reveal the Shinigami's seal the Yondaime used to contain the fox, and other seals that now coated the blonde's body.

"He's gone mad Iruka. I don't care what kind of seals were placed on the demon brat. He's dying _tonight _and become nothing more then a _memory_!" said Mizuki, as he charged at the blonde, and brought out his fuma shuriken to bring down upon Naruto.

"No. I...will _never_ become a memory," said Naruto before an incredible force of power shot upward and was felt by all with the two Chuunin with him getting thrown back it.

(Naruto's Mindscape)

Naruto found himself within his mind, which was not surprisingly a dark, and depressing place to be if you ever saw it. Naruto himself didn't care about the environment that was his mind, but rather what was in it, and to fix what was done to it along with his body. That's why he was using so much of his chakra in the first place, as there was a class at the Academy he snuck into that talked about seals, and how certain seals that kept things locked away could be broken if enough chakra was applied that was more then the seals could handle.

The blonde boy always knew he had more chakra then most, even when he didn't know a thing about chakra at all, and _now _knew where to get more of it to break them all on his body.

Kyuubi.

_**"My vessel comes to see me after all this time. What a surprise this is,"**_ said Kyuubi, as the prison doors manifested themselves, and the fox looking at the blonde with a smile on its face.

"We need to talk you and I," said Naruto, as he looked at Kyuubi, and the fox was now no longer smiling.

_**"About what?"**_ said Kyuubi having never dealt with a child not afraid of his power.

"There are seals all over my body. They were designed to restrict and suppress me in a way that cripples my person from being strong. I need your help to break them all," said Naruto seeing the Kyuubi laugh.

_**"And why should I help some weak little human like you?"**_ said Kyuubi not impressed with Naruto's words.

"Because the man who designed those seals...is the very same man who sealed _you_ into _me_! My so called _Father_, the Yondaime Hokage," said Naruto, as he saw Kyuubi's eyes widen in disbelief, and then try to attack the blonde through the cage.

_**"I knew there was something about your stench that didn't feel right! You're his damn child!"**_ said Kyuubi biting the bars, ignoring the pain they inflicted on his teeth, and tried to get free from this cruel prison.

"KNOCK IT OFF! _YOU_ ARE THE ONE ACTING LIKE A _CHILD_!" yelled Naruto with the whole area in his mind around them shaking violently from his outburst.

For once...Kyuubi obeyed his vessel and his red eyes widens when he sensed something that had not been sensed since _his_ time in the world.

_**"So you **__**do**__** have a backbone. After all the times you were beaten and nearly starved for half your current life I'd thought it was crushed beneath the booted feet of your stupid human oppressors,"**_ said Kyuubi, as he realized the seals placed on his vessel were the key catalyst to Naruto's life, and that the blonde was seeking his help to break free from the chains that were binding his body.

"Lies are very effective until the truth breaks them and the power of illusion they hold on you dies. So will you help me now or not? "said Naruto, as he could only generate chakra for so long until he used it all up, and then the Kyuubi would have to step in...willingly.

_**"And what do I get out of it if I do?"**_ said Kyuubi narrowing his crimson eyes at the boy.

"You get to witness the return of a being that once brought this world to its knees and have a front row to seat in seeing a prophecy fulfilled," said Naruto seeing Kyuubi raise its fur covered eyebrow with interest.

_**"And what prophecy is that?"**_ said Kyuubi looking at its vessel more clearly to see if what he sensed from the boy was indeed true.

"The prophecy of _Namikaze Sephiroth's_..._return_," said Naruto coldly seeing Kyuubi's eyes widen in disbelief and..._fear_.

_**"You are **__**his**__** descendent too?"**_ said Kyuubi, as he realized now _why_ the Yondaime had all those seals put on the boy, and the treatment the boy received being only half his fault.

"On my Father's side of the family. You don't believe me? Read his letters," said Naruto, as he manifest them into his mind from his memories, and showed them to the fox.

_**"Your Father was a foolish human do all this to you. Then again most humans are when it comes to prophecies. After all...they're more likely to come true when trying to take measures to stop them from happening,"**_ said Kyuubi before letting out a cruel laugh at the stupidity of the human race.

"So what do I have to do in order to get you to use your chakra to destroy all these damn seals on my body?" said Naruto sensing the fox would go along with him on this.

_**"Remove the seal from the cage and free me. My chakra will flood your body, breaking the seals, and obliterating anyone around you,"**_ said Kyuubi.

"And kill me in the process," said Naruto, as he didn't want to die just yet, and gave the Kyuubi an "I'm not dumb enough to fall for that" look.

_**"Actually, you won't die at all. Had the seals not been placed on your body, you would have absorbed me quicker, and I would have been removed from your presence by the time you were 16 years old,"**_ said Kyuubi, as he saw Naruto was shocked by this, and it was clear his old man had screwed him over completely by his fears of the prophecy.

"Let me get this straight. You are admitting to _me_, that had my old man not fucked up, and ordered those seals be put on my body...I would have been rid of you _entirely_ in the next few years?" said Naruto seeing the fox nod his head.

_**"Your chakra pathways have been thinned due to the seals on your body, which has slowed down the absorption rate of my power into you via this seal that is my cage, and the instant these seals are gone from your body they will expand to their fullest in order to handle almost everything I have,"**_ said Kyuubi, as he saw Naruto becoming increasingly angry, and the fox was fortunate the anger was not aimed at himself.

"So all I got to do is tear this seal off, free you, and your demonic chakra will flood my body to basically remake me anew. Right?" said Naruto seeing the fox nod.

_**"Correct,"**_ said Kyuubi seeing the boy walk towards the bars where the paper tag with the word "seal" on it was currently holding the bars together.

"Okay. Um...just what will happen if I do this and it doesn't work? Will I explode and kill the village by blasting them with your chakra or will I bring about your own return to the world?" said Naruto seeing the fox grin at him.

_**"If this doesn't work, half the village will be destroyed by a powerful explosion of my demonic chakra, and the other half will no doubt be destroyed when I return to the land of the living to **__**crush**__** what is left into **__**nothingness**__**!"**_ said Kyuubi, as he knew that this boy could take his power for the most part, and could easily hold back the rest until the blonde was ready.

"Either way I win. Okay let's do this," said Naruto, as he reached for the seal, but a firm hand on his wrist stopped him, and the blonde looked at who the other hand belonged to.

And was shocked like Kyuubi was to see it belong to the very man Naruto hated.

"I can't let you do that...son," said Minato, as he smiled at Naruto, but the boy didn't smile back, and freed his hand from the late Yondaime's grip.

"I don't know how you got in my body or my mind, but I want you gone, and to stay in the deepest pits of Hell where you belong for what you did!" said Naruto seeing Minato frown at him.

"I see you read the letters Naruto. Granted, you weren't meant to read one of them until _much_ later, but even still a part of you must realize that some sacrifices had to be made, and for the greater good of the world you live in," said Minato, as he hoped his son would understand that, but Naruto just seemed to look at him with such anger, and pain in those blue eyes.

"I understand _perfectly_! I understand that you sacrificed _me_! I never had a say in it and yet you had the Sandaime plan to make sure I got the crap kicked out of me. That I had to be _humbled_ with my mind and body crippled just so some stupid prophecy doesn't occur because the monster everyone fears is from the _Namikaze _bloodline. Your side of the family and yet you hid it in shame not telling anyone his last name knowing the people would _hate you_ just like they hate me right now. Your pathetic!" said Naruto, as he saw Minato scowl at him, and then surprisingly moved quickly before striking the boy with the back of his hand.

"You think it's easy having such a dark cloud over _my_ head? Over our _clan's_ head? What I did to you was to ensure the monster of our family never made it back to this world and I expect you to accept it regardless of your feelings on the matter. Grow up!" said Minato angrily that his son didn't see the bigger picture.

"Grow up? Grow up! I've been beaten, hated, and outcast because your actions. How can you tell me to 'grow up' when you haven't even experienced what I have? You wouldn't even say those two words had all the villagers and Shinobi took their pain out on _your _person!" said Naruto pointing a finger at the Yondaime.

"Its irrelevant. What _is_ relevant though is that the prophecy _never_ happens and it seems I will have to use my time here to make sure that Kyuubi doesn't get free from his cage until the Sandaime can subdue you long enough to put some memory suppressing seals on your body too," said Minato seeing Naruto's eyes widen and so did the fox's own.

"Bastard! How my Mother could love you I will _never_ understand!" said Naruto, as he saw Minato shrug, and didn't seem to care about the woman either.

"I doubt you will son. Doesn't matter. Kushina isn't here now and I doubt she'd support you in your decision even if she was," said Minato seeing Naruto growl at him felt the room shake with fury.

"Don't be too sure of that _Minato-kun_!" said a female voice behind Minato, who turned to see a fist hit him right in the face, and send him skidding closer to the bars just out of reach of the Kyuubi's claws should the fox try to reach for him.

"Kushina?" said Minato with his voice full of surprise and a hint of fear.

"M-Mom?" said Naruto, as he knew from his Father's own letters that the women loved him no matter what, and hoped she still did.

"Surprised? You really shouldn't be _Minato-kun_. After all, I was the _previous_ vessel of the Kyuubi, and you did use some of my own special chakra to help seal the fox away," said Kushina seeing her son for the first time and looked at him with kind eyes.

Eyes filled with love.

"Kushina-chan, you have to understand, the village if not the world was endanger from the prophecy being fulfilled, and I did what I had to do in order to keep everyone safe," said Minato, who got off the ground, and saw the woman walk over to her son before turning her head to glare at him.

"As if your actions alone would have stopped such a prophecy from occurring. To think the prodigal hard working genius of the Namikaze Clan could do something like this to his own son proves you are just a _prodigal_ _baka_! Had I known my son was alive, I would have stayed in the land of the living to raise him, and love our son like he should have been from the start," said Kushina seeing Minato shake his head at her words.

"That's why I had the Sandaime lie to you. You would have found the seals, found a way to break them, and possibly started the prophecy that would doomed us all. Anyone, who could be responsible for the prophecy being set in motion needed to be removed, and at all costs Kushina," said Minato seeing Kushina's eyes harden at his words.

"Then why not kill _yourself_ after you became the last Namikaze before I married you? Why not tell me the prophecy, kill yourself soon after, and be done with it? You said it yourself Minato that all those responsible for the prophecy being set in motion need to be removed and he is _your_ ancestor," said Kushina seeing the man hesitate and look away.

_**"Its because he is a coward. A hypocrite. Like all other humans, who make themselves famous in the world, the only thing they fear is dying, and losing their power they have worked so hard to achieve,"**_ said Kyuubi seeing Minato glare at him even though it was clearly true.

"Shut your mouth fur ball!" said Minato glaring at the fox while the Kyuubi just laughed at him.

_**"Why should I? You know its true. The fact your telling me to shut up just proves how much truth there is behind my words regarding your actions and you just can't stand to hear it,"**_ said Kyuubi grinning at the man while seeing Minato tense up and let out an angry growl.

While this was happening, Naruto saw his opportunity to talk to his long lost Mother, and the woman was pleased to have it.

"Mom, if I fulfill the prophecy...would you hate me?" said Naruto seeing his Mother caress his face and had tears fall down her face.

"Of course not! What you do in life is your choice Naruto-kun. Kami knows that your life so far has been nothing more then a controlled environment thanks to this baka with his so called 'plan'. To them, you were a lab rat in a maze searching for a piece of cheese that doesn't exist, and being told the cheese is there despite the truth to dispute the claim. The village should have treated you like a hero for holding the fox and instead because of your Father along with the Sandaime they did the exact opposite knowing they would react the way they do. They have to pay my son. Everyone responsible for treating people with demons in them like garbage have to pay for their crimes," said Kushina, as she knew the purpose behind vessels of the tailed beasts were to bring fear to other countries, and end wars quickly while no regard was given for the vessels themselves.

That had changed after the Shodaime Hokage defeated Madara at the Valley of the End and sealed the fox into his wife before passing on the duty to Kushina herself with few knowing of her secret. If the wrong people knew of her secret while alive, then Kushina would have been captured, and been forced to be their mindless weapon.

Her son didn't have such a blessing and the village hated him for it.

"Thanks Mom. I think I know what to do. I love you," said Naruto, as he knew what he had to do now, and his Mother smiled at him before giving him a loving hug only she could give him.

"And I love you son," said Kushina before she looked at Minato now unprotected back, and him having a few words with the fox.

It was time for Kushina's so called _husband_ to get a good long taste of the pain their son went through because of him.

"I agree," said Naruto grinning a grin that was just like his Mother when she was his age.

And with that said...they struck.

As for Minato himself, he sensed them at the last moment, turning his body to see both his wife, and son upon him before they pushed him hard against the bars of the cage. It didn't hurt that badly like he expected, but by the time he straightened himself, the reason behind their action was too late to realize, and the once great Yondaime Hokage found himself being pulled _into_ the cage by the Kyuubi.

_**"I thought after being sealed inside this boy, your own son no less, I would never get a chance to rip you to pieces, and get **__**my**__** revenge!"**_ said Kyuubi, as he grinned viciously at the now frightened Namikaze, and it was truly a sight to behold.

"Kyuubi listen to me. Please! If you make the prophecy come true, then you will unleash something far worse then yourself, and bring about the death of countless lives. Surely, you don't wish to bring about _his _return, and untold destruction that isn't brought about by your own hands?" said Minato, as he tried to plea to Kyuubi's reasoning, and ego since it was clear the fox had one when they fought.

_**"And you think I prefer the **__**alternative**__**? To live in a vessel that is weak, crippled, and unable to use his **__**full**__**potential**__**? I find such a way of life an **__**insult**__**! Better my life end in a vessel stronger then myself then one that can't even perform one the basics of your weakest of Jutsus!"**_ said Kyuubi, as it lashed out at the late Hokage, and the screams echoed for what seemed like hours to the two people outside the cage.

"It's a good thing that time has so little relevance here in your mind Naruto-kun," said Kushina seeing her son smile and she could help in smiling back.

"Yeah. Otherwise I would be screwed over more then I've already been," said Naruto before he let out a laugh that was slightly muffled by his Father's screams of pain at the hands of Kyuubi.

After the screams died out, Kyuubi appeared before them grinning a grin that made it seem today was the fox's birthday, and knew the demon had gotten his well deserved revenge on the Yondaime.

_**"Shall we proceed?"**_ said Kyuubi seeing the two nod.

"Yes. I'm going to help with this too. With our combined chakra we can purge all the seals on Naruto's body and keep what he can't take from killing him. If everything works out the way we want, both of you will live, and the prophecy will have been fulfilled," said Kushina seeing Naruto stare at her with worry.

"Wait! You're not going to survive this? At all?" said Naruto, as he didn't want to lose his Mother for a second time, and even more so when there wasn't even a once for them.

"I'm sorry Naruto-kun, but my time here was never meant to be forever, and I doubt you'd want your own Mother in your head for when you become a full grown man doing full grown man like things," said Kushina seeing her son look away with a blush on his face and she shouldn't help herself in laughing.

"Good point," said Naruto before turning to the Kyuubi and reached for the seal tag on the cage and ripped it off before the doors slowly opened.

In an instant, Naruto's body was consumed in demonic chakra, and through it a shadowy figure seemed to manifest itself in it with glowing turquoise eyes...smiling.

_"I have returned,"_ said the whispery that now let out an chuckle that spelled doom for all that opposed him.

(In the Real World)

"What happened?" said the Sandaime arriving on the scene in his battle armor along with four platoons of ANBU beside him all ready for combat.

"Mizuki tricked Naruto into stealing the Forbidden Scroll after I...after I failed him earlier at the Academy in the belief he was trying to pass a secret to become a Genin if he was able to successfully steal the scroll. When I came here, Naruto was reading some kind of letter in his hands, and then looked at me like I was his greatest enemy. Hokage-sama, what is going on?" said Iruka, as he looked from the Hokage to the tower of incredible light based power, and it terrified the man even more then when the Kyuubi attacked.

"Damn it! Get into position and prepare to attack on my orders _only_!" said the Sandaime, as he realized they were in trouble, and the prophecy was mere seconds away from being fulfilled.

Within moments, the light slowly thinned down to reveal a shadowy figure taller then Naruto, but still just a young boy, and yet they could feel his immense power. When the light cleared, a young boy twice the height of Naruto stood, wearing a loose shirt that showed lots of muscle on the upper torso in the center that was exposed, and black baggy pants with combat boots of the same color. His hair was long, flowing down his back with the color of the hair being silver, and the turquoise eyes that had slits instead of pupils.

"As I told Cloud Strife all those years ago, I...will _never _be a memory," sad the boy, as he smiled a cruel smile at the Sandaime and the old Kage felt his heart freezing at the sight of it.

'It actually happened. Sephiroth has returned through Naruto!' thought the Sandaime, as he had been thinking that by this point, the seals had done their job, and was planning to have Jiraiya slowly remove them in the next couple of years when he returned from being out spying/peeping throughout the Elemental Countries.

"You look surprised to see me old man. You shouldn't be, considering how you conspired with my Father to prevent the prophecy from coming to pass, and tried to make me your little toy. My _Mother_ was most displeased with him and you for your actions against her only son," said the figure looking at the old Kage with enigmatic eyes that were making the "God of Shinobi" Sandaime Hokage want to run away in fright.

"Naruto I...," said the Sandaime, but the glow in the boy's eyes that flashed made any words spoken choke in his throat, and made the ANBU tense.

"My name...is no longer Naruto. That boy was _shell_ of his true self. No thanks to you or my Father of course. My name...my _true_ name now is..._Namikaze Sephiroth: The One Winged Angel of Death_!" said Sephiroth, as he raised his hand to his waist, and a long greenish energy manifested itself there before is solidified into that of a very _long_ sword.

A Nodachi.

'That sword. Sephiroth's legendary blade..._Masamune_!' thought the Sandaime, as he had heard of that sword the man wielded, and was said to be lost forever...unless called for by its one true Master.

"Hokage-sama, we have to kill him now!" said the ANBU Captain wearing bird mask.

"Kill me? You've been trying to kill me for over a decade and have all failed since. What makes you think I can be killed now?" said Sephiroth looking at them all with calculating eyes.

"You may _some_ have power demon, but your still in child form, and even a monster in child form can be killed!" said another ANBU drawing his sword and the others did the same.

"Such foolish behavior. You can take such things with you into the abyss," said Sephiroth before he vanished from their sight and reappeared mere steps from the Hokage.

The ANBU instantly became blood smears that stained the ground and trees with their crimson essence of life.

"N-Naruto I...I'm sorr-AAH!" said the Sandaime, but the man was stabbed into the tree behind him by Sephiroth, and the young boy was giving the old Kage a piercing look that made the Sandaime flinch.

"The time for your lies upon lies is at end old man. I will not hear them, I will not believe them, and I refuse accept any of them that you give me," said Sephiroth, as he twisted the blade of Masamune slightly, and smiled at seeing the old man cry out in pain with blood coming down the side of his mouth.

"I didn't always lie to you Naruto. I do care about you," said the Sandaime, as he let out another gasp of pain when the former blonde twisted more of the blade, and thrust it a little bit deeper.

"You said that to me before when you really meant you cared about the village. You kept saying 'I'm sorry' when you really meant 'I don't care'. In regards to knowing about my family, you kept saying 'One day soon I'll tell you 'when in reality you kept saying 'I'll never tell you. No one will', and kept the truth locked away knowing how damaging it would be," said Sephiroth cocking his head to the right and then to the left.

Behind him in the shadows of the trees Mizuki looked on in amazement.

'He's distracted. All I have to do is get that scroll and give it to Orochimaru! Then I will be rewarded for my accomplishments with incredible power!' thought Mizuki, as he saw it lying crumpled on the ground, and was well outside of the Nodachi's cutting range.

"Tell me why I should show you or anyone in the village mercy old man? Why should I spare the lives of people that hate me for something I wasn't? Something that you had a part in shortly after the sealing," said Sephiroth, as he sensed movement behind him, and what that person was trying to do.

"Not everyone hates you Naruto. The younger generation can still be saved. You can still show them all that you're not what they say you are," said the Sandaime knowing that if he could just convince the boy to stop this, it would give the old Kage a chance to contact Jiraiya, and plan a sealing of Naruto's power once again.

"Oh really? So when the parents of these children say and I quote 'Stay away from that monster son. He's really a beast that is not to be trusted' I should simply try proving them wrong by letting these people beat me within an inch of my life?" said Sephiroth he saw the Sandaime nod.

"It will show them you are human. That a monster would have retaliated and tried to destroy them," said the Sandaime before crying out in pain when the boy drove more of his blade into him before the sword went through the Hokage's back.

"I see. Perhaps we should try that with your _Grandson_. He's what? Eight years old now? Just turned recently correct? I think I should head to your home to _test_ this little theory of yours," said Sephiroth, as he saw the Sandaime's eyes widen in fear, and smirked at the Hokage's reaction.

"Don't! Please don't Naruto," said the Sandaime knowing that his Grandson didn't deserve to suffer for his mistakes.

"No. You're right. I shouldn't kill him. After all...it would be wrong to kill a witness to my eventual masterpiece," said Sephiroth before quickly raising his left hand behind his back and fired off an intense blast of Lightning from it that struck Mizuki a few feet away from the Forbidden Scroll.

"H-How did you do that without hand signs?" said the Sandaime seeing the cruel smirk in the boy's face at the sound of the attack striking Mizuki and destroying the traitor with only a few ashes remaining to be scattered into the wind.

"I've never had to do anything involving that centuries ago why should my time in this world now be any different? Also, your Forbidden Scroll of Sealing is practically worse less to nothing, and is now lost to the Leaf," said Sephiroth, as various orbs now arose from the scroll, and then entered the Namikaze's body one at a time.

"What are you doing?" said the Sandaime seeing the last orb enter the boy's body.

"All the knowledge within the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing has now become my own to command. Mine to control how I see fit," said Sephiroth seeing the horrified look on the Hokage's face at what was just said.

Every single powerful Jutsu and ability written down in the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing since the days of the Shodaime Hokage himself had been somehow taken out of the scroll before being absorbed into the young warrior's body to use how he saw fit.

'Kami help us,' thought the Sandaime, as he realized that story behind Sephiroth of old being a Master in manipulating the elements was indeed true, and newly reincarnated Sephiroth before him had quite the arsenal to use on the Elemental Countries.

"Your time in this world is at an end Sandaime Hokage. Any last words you wish to say before I kill you?" said Sephiroth, as he saw the Sandaime struggling to breathe, and was trying to glare at him defiantly.

"The world will stop you Sephiroth. They will not allow someone like you to live when they discover you've returned. Not even you have the power to stop the Shinobi villages or the people of the Elemental Countries ready to fight a monster like yourself," said the Sandaime knowing his time was at an end.

"Of course they will fight me. They will use this moment and yourself as a martyr to rally everyone to fight my right to exist. It won't last long though. Not when they see just _who_ I target and _why_ they are targeted. This world is about to be tested by me old man. Those that pass my test live. Those that fail...well you don't have to be a genius that out," said Sephiroth smiling at the Sandaime before pulling the blade out and in a flash of movement...the legendary God of Shinobi was now death.

Sliced _diagonally_ in half.

Sephiroth dispelled Masamune from his hand knowing it would not be needed anymore for tonight and began to walk away...before stopping to stare at the one person left alive from this moment.

"N-Naruto?" said Iruka nervous, as he was mentally checking his past time spent with the boy, and seeing if the two had ever had problems.

Aside from some pranks, skipping classes, and various detentions...nothing seemed to spring to Iruka's mind.

"Don't worry Iruka. You've been good to me. You tried to teach me despite my situation at the time, which while not entirely my fault is not an excuse, and I know that you're one of the few that didn't hate me for what I hold inside. For that, I am letting you go, and I want you to tell the people of the Leaf what I've done here. Tell them _everything_ that you've seen, heard, tasted, and touched down to the last detail your mind can recall of this moment in time. I want your words to spread like a wild fire that cannot be tamed. For your words to spread throughout the land, to each village, and to each country that the ancient prophecy that foretold of the Namikaze Sephiroth's return...has finally happened," said Sephiroth before walking away from Iruka into the shadows of the forest area let out an eerie chuckle that sent a shiver down the Chuunin's spine.

The young boy was about 50 feet away from the area when he sensed someone not that far away looking in his direction and the young silver haired warrior stopped. Slowly, Sephiroth turned to where he sensed this figure looking at him, and then..._vanished_!

The person watching him gasped, as _she_ took a step back, and stopped when her body was stopped by something that wasn't there before. Letting out a loud gulp, the spy turned around slowly, and stared into the eyes of the one she was spying on.

"You mask your presence well...Hyuuga Hinata," said Sephiroth in a whispery voice, as he saw the head band of the Leaf on her forehead, and looked into her eyes to see the girl that could one day be his enemy.

Though from what he saw through his own memories, the silver haired boy didn't want her to be an enemy, and hoped Hinata didn't want to his either.

"N-Naruto-kun. I-I what...what h-happened to y-you?" said Hinata, as she saw her crush become this silver haired _God_ now standing here, and felt his incredible power looming over her body.

"You've been watching this whole time, haven't you?" said Sephiroth, as he loved how she spoke his old name, and saw Hinata blushing at being caught spying/stalking him.

She knew what happened, but even after seeing it, Hinata still had a hard time _believing_ it.

"I-I didn't mean t-to spy o-on y-you Naruto-kun. When the a-alarm went o-off, I-I snuck out o-of my home to h-help everyone else, and I-I followed your chakra s-signature here with my Byakugan," said Hinata looking at the boy seeing smile a gentle smile at her and she couldn't help the rushing heat that swarmed her face.

"You only wish to do your loyal duty as a Shinobi of the Leaf. To prove yourself among your peers that you can be strong like them despite being so young. I must commend you on doing such an honorable thing despite what your profession requires of you to be the exact opposite in certain cases," said Sephiroth, as he put his index, and middle finger together before caressing the Hyuuga girl's flushed red face from the contact.

"W-What about y-you? What a-are you g-going to do n-now?" said Hinata, as she was finding it hard to focus on the living Adonis before her due to the physical contact, and yet it was because of the physical contact that she wished to know should such an event never happen again.

"My place is not here in the Leaf. As to why that is...you will soon understand that reason Hyuuga Hinata when the people of Konoha react to what you have had the privilege to secretly witness after Iruka tells them about how I killed the late Sandaime Hokage. That I am the second coming of a deadly monster far worse the Kyuubi ever was when he attacked," said Sephiroth, as he saw the girl look at him with sadness, and was surprised she didn't have one of anger.

"You're not a monster or a demon despite what people kept saying. At least...not to me. I never thought of you like that," said Hinata, as she saw him raise an eyebrow, and it was clear he wasn't expecting that response.

"You don't? Then what do you see with those eyes?" said Sephiroth his voice a whisper, but he was so close Hinata could hear him easily as if he was yelling, and saw her body fidget when looking into her eyes.

"I-I see...someone who has seen pain, suffering, and...loneliness," said Hinata, as she was a bit terrified in telling him the truth, and what he would do upon hearing her words.

Then again, lying to her crush was not something she wanted to do, and felt that it was best to die speaking the truth.

"You have sharp eyes for one so young. Gentle, yet sharp. You will go far if given the chance Hyuuga Hinata. You will indeed go far," said Sephiroth, as he nodded his head in agreement with what she said about him, and could not do anything to dispute the truth behind her words.

And with that done, Sephiroth took one step back from Hinata, and began to walk away from her.

"Wait! Um...will I-I ever see you again?" said Hinata, as she felt cold without him being near her, and didn't want him to leave.

"Maybe. Maybe not. The road I take can always take me back here. Whether we do meet again or not, I want _you_ to grow up to be strong Hyuuga Hinata, and perhaps...perhaps _I_ the infamous Namikaze Sephiroth will see the fruits of your labor from such efforts," said Sephiroth, as he looked back slightly at Hinata with a smirk on his face, and then without another word continued on without looking back any further.

Where the One-Winged Angel of Death traveled throughout the Elemental Countries, she could not follow, and would have to wait until the time was right until she even could.

The Elemental Countries were in for a rude awakening.

(YAY! Another fic posted. I hope you like this. Its been running around in my head and it just wouldn't stop bugging me. Like an itch you can't stop from itching unless you scratch it. Until next time...PEACE!)


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2-The Angel and Demons

(A/N: Okay. Real quick note here. In the first chapter there was a minor..._error_ in terms of describing Naruto's/Sephiroth's height when he became the One-Wing Angel and it needs to be corrected. Sephiroth's height is higher then Shino's by a few inches and the only reason I wrote what I did in the first chapter was because of the restriction seals for his height. Plus the malnutrition Naruto got as a kid basically made him to be severely short so you have to picture the kid being shorter then usual. Just thought I'd clear this up. ENJOY!)

Sephiroth walked through the dense forest on the borders of Fire Country with a smile on is face the whole way through his traveling to wherever he felt like going. It had been a little over a week since his new found freedom and Sephiroth relished every second of it. The memories of pain, suffering, and figurative suffocation in being Uzumaki Naruto in all aspects were fresh in the young warriors mind. He was shorter then all the kids at the Academy, considered the dumbest of all of them too, and easiest of prey for others to take their pains out on simply because they could.

But like the old saying goes, what doesn't kill you, can only make you stronger, and _that_ was exactly what happened in the end with Naruto being reborn as Sephiroth. With no more seals restricting, suppressing, or doing anything to impede his abilities the One-Winged Angel felt like a bird free from its cage flying anywhere his heart desired.

'Though that won't last long. No doubt the powers that be in Konoha will seek to cut my _flying_ short,' thought Sephiroth, as he frowned at that, and knew soon every high ranking Shinobi would be searching for him.

Sephiroth soon stopped in his tracks while stopping that line of thought when he sensed a small group of people that were camping out not that far away. Curious, the boy walked towards the group, and saw them sitting by a warm fire eating a meal of ration bars that seemed to be a common thing from the sight of them resisting the desire gag when eating.

"This deal we got with Gato makes me nervous Boss," said one of the two short almost identical twin looking figures wearing a gauntlet on one hand.

"Me too. I hear he's a real snake in the grass," said the other "twin" before biting down on his ration bar.

"So what if Gato is a snake in the grass? It's those kind of guys, who pay the most, and that's what we need," said the "Boss" giving the "twins" a glare while the girl near him wearing a strange mask on the side of her face stayed quiet.

"What if he betrays us?" said the first "twin" curiously.

"Then you and your brother will take him out in the way you kill best," said the "Boss", as he stopped in the middle of eating, and looked in Sephiroth's direction.

"I was beginning to wonder when you would sense me," said Sephiroth walking into their campsite and was greeted with the four people now getting ready for a fight.

"You've got a lot of balls to come in like your hot stuff brat!" said the second "twin" now wielding both gauntlets just like the first "twin" with both ready to pounce with both of them having their knees bent.

"Why are you here?" said the girl putting her mask on and got ready to fight using senbon needles she brought to her fingers.

"Me? I'm just passing through, but then sensed your little group here eating, and talking about a possible job with someone named Gato," said Sephiroth, as he took a few more steps into the camp, and looked at how they were now ready to attack him all at once.

"Meaning we can't let you live," said the "Boss" of the group with the large sword in hand.

"Really? Shame. I wanted to join you in your little business opportunity. Surely an extra hand in what the job you're hired for could use an extra hand?" said Sephiroth, as he saw the "twins" laugh a little, and saw then saw the "Boss" smirk like it was joke.

It wasn't.

"What we intend to do is work for a real slime ball and get our hands really bloody. You are just a punk kid, what could you know of spilling blood, and being an agent of death?" said the "Boss" seeing the kid, who was possibly Haku's age, and had an air of confidence about him.

But it was those eyes that unsettled the leader of the group.

"Me? Spilling blood? Yes, I think I know something of that, and being an agent of death when you consider the fact...the Sandaime Hokage of the Leaf was killed by my hands," said Sephiroth seeing the surprise on the groups face and the disbelief that followed.

"You did what? Impossible!" said the "Boss" of the group since he clearly didn't believe a kid could take down a Kage.

"_Nothing_ is impossible when it comes to me," said Sephiroth, as he raised his hand, and he manifested his Nodachi before their very eyes.

"What the Hell?" said the "twins" at the same time.

"You weren't bluffing when you said the Sandaime Hokage died at your hands," said the "Boss" of the group now seeing the look of a person with a precision mean streak longer then his zanbatou and twice as wide.

"No I wasn't. By now, all of the Leaf is on lockdown, word spreading to the Fire Daimyo about what I did, and a new Hokage is being looked for to take the old man's place," said Sephiroth, as he looked at them, and his eyes calculating who to strike first should this fight happen between them.

"What's your name?" said the "Boss" of the group with narrowed eyes.

"Namikaze Sephiroth: The One-Winged Angel of Death," said Sephiroth, as he saw the man look at him with surprise, and backing away slightly in fear.

"Zabuza-sama, what is it?" said the girl having given the man a name for Sephiroth to use for when addressing him.

"Stand down. All of you. If this is who I think it is...he could crush us all right now like were insects," said Zabuza seeing the three around him look back with surprised looks on their faces.

"What? Who is this punk kid?" said the first "twin" of the two.

"Shut up you _idiot_! Everyone of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist have all heard of the legendary and infamous Namikaze Sephiroth. His story, his legend, and rumor pertaining to his skills as a swordsmen are past down from teacher to student. The man was and still is considered a God amongst men when it came to the way of the sword. It was said that Sephiroth could slice through mountains in a single swing of his blade, could make it rain blood like it was a natural occurrence, and wield power greater then the Kyuubi itself," said Zabuza seeing the sword the boy manifested into his hands and _knew_ deep within his mind this kid had revealed to them the one great sword of the said man.

Sephiroth's sword..._Masamune_!

"Then you know about the prophecy. Then you know it was said he would one day return to this world," said Sephiroth seeing the man nod his head.

"You're his...his reincarnation," said Zabuza, as he knew this kid still had a ways to go in growing to match the original height of _the_ Sephiroth centuries ago, but the boy was well on his way, and knew that they were lucky to even have this long a conversation with him right now instead of being dead.

"Yes. Yes I am," said Sephiroth smiling at the group seeing them now terrified at being in his presence.

"Y-You mentioned you wanted to join us," said the second "twin" of the two and they saw Sephiroth nod.

"I do. If you're concerned about the loss of money, I'll let you keep my share, as I just wish to leave here, and explore the Elemental Countries for awhile," said Sephiroth, as it was clear this Gato was not from Fire Country, and had need of services away from the Leaf.

Perfect for someone like Sephiroth.

"Yeah. I imagine killing the Sandaime Hokage of Konoha would bring down a lot of heat on you since the man was highly respected for his skills as a Shinobi. Still, if you bring down too much heat, I would appreciate it if you left the group, and take whatever they throw at you away from us since we don't need to villages on our tails," said Zabuza, as he saw Sephiroth nod in respect to that terms, and could tell the boy had honor in him.

"Now that we are in agreement about that, could you tell me your names, and some of your skills since I need to know who I will be working with?" said Sephiroth put away Masamune, and sat down on a log that had yet to be used for the fire that gave the young warrior a Godly look about him.

"Sure. Names Momochi Zabuza. Former member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. I left after my failed coup on the Mizukage failed and I rescued her from the Bloodline Civil War that's sprung up there," said Zabuza, as he pointed to the girl, and she nodded before looking at Sephiroth while trying to keep her nerves from breaking under those glowing powerful eyes.

"My name is Haku. Just...Haku. I left with Zabuza-sama after he found me living on the streets looking for food and trained me to the Shinobi I am now," said Haku, as she was not about to reveal her bloodline, or the fact she used it accidentally in a moment of terror to kill her Father along with an angry mob of people hating bloodline users.

"I'm Gozu and this is Meizu. We're the Demon Brothers. We left because the Mizukage started the civil war against people with bloodlines. We're tag team type of attackers and our gauntlets have poison in them so even if we just get a scratch on the enemy they can still die later," said Gozu, as he saw Sephiroth nod, and then stare at the fire.

"My name is Namikaze Sephiroth. I am the reincarnation of the first as foretold by a prophecy that a Namikaze on my Father's side of the family would come forth into this world. On the night of October 10th, the Kyuubi attacked the Leaf village when I was born as Uzumaki Naruto, and my Father the Yondaime Hokage sealed the fox into me while knowing I was the child of that prophecy. He conspired with the Sandaime Hokage along with another to prevent the prophecy from ever occurring while using the sealing of the Kyuubi as an excuse to have the people of the Leaf keep me..._humbled_ as they put it. When I learned the truth of this, I set the Kyuubi free within my body to smash through the seals, and killed the Sandaime for his years of lies against me. As for the Kyuubi, even now he still resides within my body. and resting in my mind using what remaining power he has left until I absorb him fully in the next few years," said Sephiroth seeing the jaws of the group drop at the brief story about his life.

"You are really the vessel of the Kyuubi?" said Haku, as she saw him nod, and blushed at the sight of his now revealed stomach that had the faint signs of the Shinigami's Seal imprinted on it.

"Yes. Since I can remember, which is a lot mind you, I've been attack by the people of the Leaf, and saved in a plan to make me grateful to the Sandaime in order to ensure my loyalty. What's more, is I had various seals placed on my body to restrict, and suppress my power so the prophecy could never happen," said Sephiroth, as he put his shirt down, and never once stopped looking at the fire when talking.

'Damn and I thought Haku had it bad,' thought Zabuza, as he looked at the girl for a brief second, and then back at Sephiroth.

"Now that introductions are over, please tell me about Gato, and what he requires of our services," said Sephiroth wanting to get to the business at hand.

(Konoha-At the Moment)

As Sephiroth had predicted upon the Sandaime Hokage's death, the village was indeed in lockdown, and word had spread throughout the Leaf about what happened not that long ago. Many blamed the Kyuubi brat for this, as they just wanted him dead, and yet the old Kage had "protected" the demon boy from any true harm they felt the monster deserved. Many of the younger generation that knew Naruto from the Academy days were very surprised by this, but it was Uchiha Sasuke that was livid among the group, and seething in anger at Naruto of all people killing the Sandaime.

Shikamaru didn't know what to think when word spread of the Sandaime's death due to the man supposedly being a legend among Shinobi that had done so much in his time and was the only Hokage to come out of retirement since most Shinobi die young. Kiba was surprised that this happened, as he always picked on Naruto, calling him a runt, and just following the crowd in what people thought of him. Choji was like Shikamaru, as the two had grown up together, and had no ill will towards the blonde boy.

Though no one in the classroom waiting for the Jounin instructors to arrive except Hinata and Iruka knew the boy was no longer blonde.

Ino was terrified, as she didn't think someone like _Naruto_ could kill the Sandaime, and it seemed less likely when you consider the ranks of the two along with comparing their stats against the other. If anything, in Ino's mind anyway, the winner should have been the Sandaime by a landslide, and the girl wondered if Naruto was indeed the horrible demon the people around her thought he was.

Sakura was among the first to believe Naruto was just that, as she had learned much in the ways of hating the blonde boy from her parents, and to make his life as miserable as possible. Shino had never cared much for Naruto, as the bugs inside his body spoke to be cautious of the blonde, but at the same time the Aburame never shunned him either, and decided to keep his distance while trying to look like he was keeping his distance.

While new Genin were waiting for their Jounin to arrive, the said Jounin were all in a room with two of the three Sannin with the Councils, and the Clan Heads there too. At the moment, a new Hokage was being decided with all those present trying to determine just whom among them had the might, and the right to take the mantle from the Sandaime Hokage.

The old man left pretty big shoes to fill that were only surpassed by the late Yondaime Hokage himself and everyone knew how that turned out shortly after happening.

"So who should become the new Hokage? We need a competent leader, who is capable of handling this dreaded situation, and running the village when the lockdown has been lifted," said Nara Shukaku with his mind and body being fully awake for once in a very rare form.

"It won't be easy to choose from. The old man left a massive hole to fill. What about one of the Sannin here? They've learned from him and could take the mantle if they wished to," said Tsume knowing both of the Sandaime's loyal students were more then qualified for the job.

"I can't. I have to track down the gaki and prepare some kind of sealing procedure to take him down," said Jiraiya, as he was best used in this case out on the field, and looked at a fuming Tsunade looking ready to tear this place apart piece by piece.

Jiraiya suspected the only reason Tsunade came back was to be at their sensei's funeral.

The instant Jiraiya heard of the old man's death at the hands of the person _no one_ wanted to see brought back to this world, the Toad Sannin had to do what he hoped _never _to do, and contact Tsunade about the Sandaime's death. What's more, Jiraiya told her about Naruto not being dead, and he along with their sensei lied to make sure Naruto didn't grow up around her.

She would have pounded him into paste had Jiraiya not explained _very quickly_ about the prophecy, about Namikaze Sephiroth coming back via Naruto, and all that was done to prevent it from happening. Tsunade again wanted to pound the man into paste, but chose to keep that option in reserve for later, and followed him back to the Leaf to know _exactly _what had happened from the only witness to the event that led to the Sandaime's death.

After Iruka told them _everything_ that happened, Tsunade wanted to know _why_ Naruto was even treated in that manner rather then the opposite, and didn't like the answer. First, the people around her didn't know, or care about Naruto to even look into it. To them, Naruto was the Kyuubi vessel first, to be considered an _it_, and not a person like he should have been. An animal to be tamed by barbaric means and let the way that's worked for years stay the course until something wrong actually happens.

Well something _did_ go wrong and this event was proof the old ways were _obsolete_!

"And what exactly would I get out of being Hokage? Nothing! You bakas hate Naruto for the fox, my perverted former teammate helped our _now_ late sensei, and the Yondaime in keeping the prophecy from happening with the results of the so called _plan_ blowing up in your face! What do I can from coming after my own Godson? The Godson I was told _died_, which I recall was part of the plan, and should never have been started _in the first place_!" said Tsunade seeing people around her give the woman a lot of space due to the state she was in being known to crush small mountains.

"Tsunade, be serious! The boy would have become Sephiroth regardless of whatever the Yondaime or Sandaime planned to stop it. The fact you are _defending_ this monster makes me question your sanity and loyalty to the Leaf," said Koharu, as she saw Tsunade turn that angry face towards the elderly woman, and looked ready to unleash it.

"And how would _you _know that he would turn you old _bitch_! You supported the people in this room that wanted him killed or turned into a weapon. Not to mention that the very _reason_ for the crap this village put Naruto through wasn't even _relevant_ to the prophecy!" said Tsunade angrily.

"Nevertheless, a Hokage is needed to keep the village from feeling overwhelmed, and there is no one here with the ability to do that except yourself. Please Tsunade-sama, would you become Hokage of the Leaf, and take up the mantle your family did years ago?" said Aburame Shibi, as he knew being polite to this woman was the only logical way to reach Tsunade, and keep the temper she had from destroying everything.

And it worked.

The Sannin closed her eyes, bringing the temper she was infamously known for having _slowly _into submission, and looked at each of the fools that were left in charge of this village with deadly glares.

"Fine! I'll become Hokage. _However_, we're going to do thing _my _way, and if you don't like it then you can resign from your positions. Got it?" said Tsunade, as she looked at each of them dead in the eyes to _dare_ challenge her, and saw none of them did.

(Wave Country-East Side Dockyard)

"What the Hell is this? I asked for you, the Demon Brothers, and the masked one here. Now you bring _another_ in to join your ranks to further up the rates?" said Gato, as he looked at the group in front of him, and was not happy about spending so much of his not hard earned _illegal_ money.

"The rate we gave you is the same. The new kid won't take any of our cut so be thankful that the rate were giving you doesn't go up because it _could _if you piss me off any further today," said Zabuza, as he saw Gato look at him suspiciously, and then at Sephiroth.

"He doesn't look like much," said Gato looking at Sephiroth with squinting eyes.

"Don't underestimate him. He can hold his own like the rest of us. If anything, you're getting a better rate with him here then without," said Zabuza knowing the man was only happy when his wallet wasn't so squeezed and this was the best way to make Gato see things better.

"I'd better. Now, the first order of business is to keep the people of this shit hole under my thumb until I can get some more of my men over to the island, and that's going to take some time. They're coming over from a port from another country, but the officials there need more grease on their wheels before they can properly spin in my favor, and until then you're going to watch over the place for me," said Gato seeing the majority of the group was not pleased by the assignment.

"That's it? We do guard duty?" said Gozu not believing they were assigned such a low ranked task.

"Just for now. There are few..._insects_ in Wave that need to be exterminated soon enough so when I feel they need to be taken care of I'll have you do it," said Gato, as he could send his thugs easily, but they were cheap, and it would be better to get what he paid for with the Missing Nin here.

Plus the new one with them.

"Fine. Though we expect to be paid for doing our assignments so don't even think about screwing us over...or else!" said Zabuza, as he walked away with the others following, and heading out to the accommodations Gato was providing.

(Konoha-Hokage's Office-2 Weeks Later)

Tsunade sighed, as she looked over the missions in front of her, and seeing which ones to give to the various new Genin teams on hand. Gai's team had a few C-ranked missions under their belt, but the Councils wished for the Rookies to get their feet wet too, and said that they needed to grow fast in hopes of combating Sephiroth one day. Tsunade didn't agree with them on it, but shortly after the lockdown was lift, the Fire Daimyo came to see them, and he looked less then pleased when hearing how the plan to prevent the prophecy from happening had failed.

The man approved of her being appointed to being Hokage, but not in her decision to keep the newly minted Genin in the Leaf training, and learning more of the basic from their Jounin sensei. He told Tsunade to do what needed to be done in terms of getting those Genin stronger and to send them on dangerous missions if necessary when not training.

'Meaning throw them into the fires of Hell to see who comes out okay, slightly burned, or extra crispy,' thought Tsunade, as she saw the escort mission to Wave Country, and called for her assistant Shizune to come in.

"Yes Tsunade-sama?" said Shizune, as she saw the woman looking over the piles upon piles of missions, and knew what the Slug Princess was thinking.

_What the Hell am I doing here?_

"Get me Genin Team 8 and Team 9 in here for a C-ranked mission I have that suits them perfectly," said Tsunade, as she knew this wouldn't be too much for both teams since it was a simple escort mission of one old man to his country, and couldn't possibly pose any problems the two teams.

Within moments, each team was in front of her ready for their given assignment, and the Hokage laid it out for them what the mission was before introducing the old man that was their client named Tazuna. As for Tazuna himself, he wasn't really impressed with the two Genin teams, and questioned the potential this group had in protecting him.

"Don't worry Tazuna-san. My team has excellent trackers and can spot anyone coming our way for miles," said Kurenai, as she looked at her team, and saw them looking their best not the be frightened of the foe waiting for them somewhere that was the village's enemy as a whole.

"Yosh! My youthful team also has the same tracking ability and have more experience in escorting. However, if Kurenai-san wishes to be in command of this mission, I will be a youthful gentlemen, and let her have it," said Gai, as he heard two of his three Genin groan, and the third that was his mini-clone go on about how noble he was.

"No Gai. Its all right. I'll be second-in-command for this," said Kurenai, as she was still slightly green when it came to being a Jounin, and didn't want to bite off more then she could possibly chew with her team on the line.

"Team 8 and 9 will leave tomorrow for Wave Country with Tazuna in the morning," said Tsunade, as she knew the old man was too drunk to take now, and it was in the middle of the afternoon too meaning the two teams wouldn't be out of the village until near nightfall by the time they packed.

"I don't like this Tsunade-sama," said Shizune worriedly.

"I know Shizune. My Godson has become something so terrifying that I'm so hesitant to send these Genin to their possible _doom_ should we ever encounter him. Have the Bing Books been updated and sent out to our Shinobi in the field?" said Tsunade, as she saw Shizune nod, and knew the woman didn't like it.

"Every single one. Soon, _he_ will be in every Bingo Book in the Elemental Countries, and every Shinobi from every village will come after him," said Shizune knowing the death toll was going to be high.

'Forgive me my Godson. It's now out of my hands,' thought Tsunade, as she cursed her sensei, and Jiraiya for their stupidity in this mess.

(Wave Country-Several Days Later)

"The Demon Brothers failed to assassinate the bridge builder. The group escorting him from the Leaf was too large for them to take down so they couldn't kill the old man. I signaled them to retreat," said Sephiroth seeing Zabuza frown at the report and knew this could be a problem.

"It's a good thing I had you there just in case. Where are they now? The Demon Brothers I mean," said Zabuza, as he wanted them to get in front of the group, and rejoin him here in Wave to take down the group.

"They'll be here by tomorrow. Just ahead of the escort group. Had it been one Genin team and there Jounin sensei things would be different," said Sephiroth seeing Zabuza nod in agreement.

Three Genin along with the one Jounin sensei shouldn't be too much even for the Demon Brothers, but that wasn't the problem, and Zabuza knew it. Nor were the six Genin in this group the real threat, but rather it was two Jounin that bothered him simply because the two Jounin themselves could be quite skilled, and be able to defeat him if he got sloppy.

"Tell them to follow the group and get ahead of it after they land. We'll join up to take them down," said Zabuza, as he saw Sephiroth nod, and leave to inform the two Missing Nin.

"I'm surprised he listens to you Zabuza-sama," said Haku knowing how powerful the boy was and yet obeyed her Master.

"Its not simply that he trusts me Haku. Its because I've made all the decisions he would and I sense my life would be at an end if I even _thought_ of conspiring with his enemies," said Zabuza, as he felt a chill run up his spine every time they talked, and knew it was those eyes that kept warning the Demon of the Mist that betraying Sephiroth was a one way trip into a place even demons didn't wish to be sent to.

"I won't let him kill you Zabuza-sama," said Haku, as she would defend her Master with her very life, and stop even Sephiroth from taking Zabuza away.

"Don't Haku. Even if he decides to kill me, I consider it an honor unto itself to die at the hands of Namikaze Sephiroth, and the legendary sword he wields in battle. I don't even think there is a better way to end to my life then that," said Zabuza seeing Haku nod in understanding though it was clear she didn't like it.

(With Tazuna, Team 8, and Team 9)

"Be silent while I row you over. Gato's men patrol these waters so any noise you make could bring them here," said the nervous ferryman not wanting to be spotted and then killed for this group's stupidity.

To two teams along with Tazuna obeyed since they didn't want to cause any problems they didn't have to and decided to be amazed at the massive incomplete bridge in the background that was slowly being built. They had to admit, that such a structure was indeed impressive, and wondered if it could be finished soon.

When the boat docked on shore, the group got off, and made their way deep into the dense forest using an old back route Tazuna knew to get to his house. They were stopped when Hinata sensed something before activating her Byakugan and threw a kunai into the bushes. Upon closer inspection, it was a bunny that Hinata almost hit, but Kurenai along with Gai noticed the bunny's fur was white, and the season was that of Spring.

Meaning the animal was domesticated.

Meaning that the bunny was used as a substitution before the kunai hit its mark.

Meaning this was a...

"It's a trap! Duck!" said Kurenai, as she grabbed her students, and Gai grabbed the old man while his own students dove for the ground when a massive sword flew past them to get stuck in a tree high above them with someone standing on the hilt of the weapon.

"My associates weren't lying when they said the old man was being protected by a large group of Shinobi. And ones from the Leaf too no less. It must be my lucky day," said Zabuza, as he grinned behind his bandages, and leaped down with his sword behind his back.

"You're Momochi Zabuza. The Demon of the Mist and Jounin in rank before becoming a Missing Nin," said Kurenai, as she quickly looked at her students knowing that they each had bloodlines, which were not welcome there, and hoped the man didn't embrace such immoral beliefs.

"Good. You know my name. That saves me the need to introduce myself. Besides, if you know who _I_ am, then you must know two of my associates, and there way of killing runts like the ones you have with you," said Zabuza before snapping his fingers and in a quick instant the Demon Brothers shot out of their hiding spots to wrap the razor sharp chain around the Genin along with the old man to kill them quickly.

However, Gai's female student Tenten was knowledgeable of the weapons the two used, and knew how to counter it by shooting kunai into the chain itself with the points of the kunai sticking through the holes of the chain design into the tree to stop it. Next, Gai's mini-clone Rock Lee used his Taijutsu skills to break the chain, and Neji quickly warned them of the poison in each of the gauntlets.

"It seems they have some skill brother," said Gozu surprised the group was so skilled for being just Genin.

"It just means we'll have to try harder brother," said Meizu, as he moved his one eye to Team 8, and Gozu saw what he was thinking about since that was there secret way of indicating whom to target next.

Quickly, they moved towards Team 8 gauntlet arms raised to strike them down, or at least poison the group before moving onto the old man. Hinata from her direction used Gentle Fist to knock Gozu back into a tree while Kiba and Shino knocked Meizu into a tree of his own.

"Don't think that just because the majority of this team are ranked Genin that they are weak Zabuza," said Kurenai, as she saw him looking pleased by this, and wondered why that was.

"Its not that my dear. I was merely testing the waters behind the rumors that Leaf Genin are on the level of regard everyone seems to hold them. Even more so when you consider my _other _ace in the hole that has recently joined me," said Zabuza laughing a cruel laugh that neither Kurenai nor Gai liked one bit.

"And just _who_ else would you have at your command that would bring about such fear in us?" said Gai, as he saw the thick wrapping of bandages on Zabuza stretch to the point of nearly tearing from the smile the man had, and it was making the two Leaf teams become more nervous.

"Why spoil the surprise when he can introduce himself to you right now. Correction, he can _re_introduce himself," said Zabuza before looking to his right and saw the figure he was referring to make himself known with a gasp from Hinata.

"Hello everyone. Its so good to see you again after such a short time...Hyuuga Hinata," said Sephiroth, as he saw Hinata look conflicted, and his sight of her was blocked by the protective form of Yuhi Kurenai.

"How do you know my student?" said Kurenai with kunai drawn in one hand and the other ready to go through hand signs to cast a Genjutsu.

"Its not surprising she didn't tell you. In fact, Iruka himself didn't know she witnessed my rebirth, and what transpired afterwards," said Sephiroth making Gai and Kurenai tense at hearing him say that.

"You're him. You're Namikaze Sephiroth reborn," said Kurenai seeing the smile on the boy's lips and the smooth chuckle that followed.

"Got it one. Congratulations," said Sephiroth, as he summoned Masamune to his hand, and slowly began to walk towards them.

"We can't face him. We have to retreat," said Kurenai seeing Gai nod, but his team was not so willing, and were now ready to fight the silver haired youth.

"Sorry Gai-sensei, but this guy will just pursue us, and eventually cut us down," said Tenten, as she brought out her own sword, and prepared to see if the rumors of this foe were indeed true.

"It seems Fate has decided to test whom among this group will be alive after today," said Neji, as he got into Gentle Fist stance again, and had his Byakugan active.

"We must protect the client from our foes and I cannot forgive myself if I don't fight such a worthy enemy," said Lee, as he got into his own Taijutsu stance taught to him by Gai, and motioned for Sephiroth to engage them in battle.

"Such strength in the face of your demise. It will _almost _be a shame that I have to end your lives today," said Sephiroth, as he smirked at them, and in an instant was upon them.

And another instant later, the three Genin were in the air, as Tenten's sword shattered to pieces beyond repair, Neji with multiple cuts all over his body, the same as Lee, and their dual bun haired teammate. Blood leaving their bodies from the devastating injuries that Sephiroth hit them with using Masamune, and they each fell to the ground in pain.

In pain, _but_ alive to live another day, and that in itself was a miracle to them.

In the that moment, Gai was upon Sephiroth using all the skills, and knowledge that made him an elite Jounin Taijutsu Master. However, Sephiroth's speed was nothing to laugh at, as the silver haired youth dodged them all, and even caught Gai's fist aimed at his face before pulling the man in close to give the spandex wearing Jounin a harsh knee to the gut that sent him flying back past the group by at least 20 feet.

"Let's see how you handle Genjutsu!" said Kurenai, as she prepared to use one, but before the Jounin could even get through half the hand signs needed for one of her more nasty illusions, the world around her became dark, and cold like the very warmth of the sun one feels during the summer years become eclipse in darkness.

"I know all about Genjutsu and illusions my dear. Let me show one of _mine_. 'Confuse!'" said Sephiroth, as he walked by the stumbling woman, who in his illusionary world couldn't stand straight, and soon collapsed with her stomach doing more flips then an acrobat before a sharp strike to Kurenai's neck took her down.

And then there were four.

Well five if you count Maito Gai getting back up off the ground.

"I think we should run now," said Kiba, as he saw Sephiroth turn to them now, and was walking towards them.

"You can't run. Not from me," said Sephiroth, as he was in front of Kiba in less then a second, and landed a solid fist to the Inuzuka's stomach causing the boy to fall to his knees puking up what was left of the lunch he ate yesterday.

His dog Akamaru tried to bite Sephiroth, but the silver haired youth grabbed the dog by the neck, and threw him away from the group before focusing on the Aburame preparing his swarm of insects. The young Namikaze shook his head in displeasure at this before making a quick slicing motion and over two thirds of the insects cried out in pain while the boy that commanded them grabbed his chest in pain from the wound that was now there. Then without a word to the insect user, Sephiroth was behind him, and a simple chop to the back of the neck made the last male member of Team 8 fall to the ground.

"Dynamic Entry!" said Gai throwing a kunai in front of him while leaping forward in the hopes it would distract Sephiroth from the client and young Hyuuga Heiress.

It didn't.

Sephiroth easily moved his head to the right to let the kunai go right past his face and caught Gai's foot with his free hand before slamming the man hard into the ground. With a stab to the man's leg before kicking him in the head hard to make him fall unconscious, thus the Jounin was temporarily out of commission until further notice, and the One-Winged Angel of Death then focused on Hinata protecting the client while in the same kind of Gentle Fist stance her cousin had been in earlier.

"I never expected our paths to cross so soon Hyuuga Hinata. To be honest, I didn't even believe we would, and yet...here we are," said Sephiroth, as he saw the Hyuuga girl hold her ground despite the various emotions within those lavender eyes, and yet still saw the strength he knew existed.

"I-I will defend T-Tazuna w-with my life. I-I will do w-what I must," said Hinata, as she didn't want to face her crush like this, and yet her duty to the Leaf _commanded_ that she do so regardless of what her heart said.

"I know you will and for that reason...I show you mercy," said Sephiroth seeing Hinata's confusion written on her face before she stiffened when senbon needles from above in the trees struck the girl's pressure points that caused the Hyuuga Heiress to collapse in shock.

"What the Hell?" said Kiba having partially recovered from the painful blow he received to his stomach before senbon needles hit him in the back of the neck and he quickly fell to the ground unconscious.

"And then there was one," said Sephiroth, as he walked towards the crying man, and saw his spirit to fight anymore had been broken from their actions.

"Please, I beg you. Don't kill me. I...I need to live long enough to save my people. They suffer under Gato's rule. He bleeds us dry every second of everyday and the only way to free ourselves from his tyranny is the bridge I'm making. It is the hope of our country," said Tazuna, as he fell to his knees, and stared at the figure that would be his executioner.

For a moment, Sephiroth stared at Tazuna, looking him with cold calculating eyes, and to the old man's surprise along with that of those around him...the silver haired bringer of death dispelled his sword before walking away.

"What are you doing? We have orders to kill the old man!" said Gozu and Meizu at the same time.

"Just because we have orders to kill the bridge builder doesn't mean we have to do it right now. Let him and the two teams he's with pass," said Sephiroth seeing the shocked looks on the Demon Brothers' faces and looking to Zabuza to confirm this action.

"Why?" said Zabuza frowning at the boy while Sephiroth motioned for Haku to knock out the old man via senbon needle to a pressure point on his body that the girl did quickly to prevent unwanted ears from hearing the reason.

"Do I really need to give you a reason? If you must know the truth, then so be it. Even if we killed them all, Tazuna included in this, it would soon be clear to the Leaf that the mission they were sent on was not the rank it should be to send just two teams like these to a neutral country without a Shinobi village, and more Shinobi would come. The Leaf's ANBU to be more precise and Gato would no doubt let it slip just _who_ did the deed. I highly doubt the Mist will let the opportunity to send Hunter Nin after you slide," said Sephiroth, as he saw Zabuza frown knowing that was true, and that Gato would do that while keeping them around so they wouldn't get paid.

"So we let them live, they send a message back to the Leaf to send backup to fight us, and yet they target you mostly while keeping the Mist out of this since it would hurt Konoha's pride to let them in on possibly capturing us instead of them," said Zabuza knowing that Mist would be all over them when they learned of how this group was killed.

"Exactly. This way Gato will be hesitant to do anything stupid against us while _we_ get to see if he's actually going to pay you. If the businessman is the kind of person we think he is, then its clear Gato will _not_ keep his end of the deal, and send his thugs after us when our next battle is over while we are at our weakest," said Sephiroth seeing Zabuza getting angry at the thought of being backstabbed by the business man.

"So we go back, say we failed to get the old man, but we'll get him later, and make it a more public event to keep the rest of the people in this country in line?" said Zabuza seeing Sephiroth smile that eerie smile of his.

"Now you understand. Brute force is good to instill fear, if only for a short time, _but_ it is the more surgical ones that are truly everlasting, and remembered for years to come," said Sephiroth knowing from his past life centuries ago.

"You think they'll live long enough to get a message back to the Leaf?" said Haku, as she appeared next to him with her mask still on, and saw him nod his head to signify that they would.

"They are badly injured, but the damage is only lethal should they choose _not_ to get their wounds properly treated, and to prevent long term problems," said Sephiroth simply.

The group of Missing Nin were gone long before the group awoke in from the realm of their unconscious mind to that of being in pain from their injuries, but they were all glad to be alive, and were surprised that they even _were_ alive considering just _who_ defeated them.

Though _why_ they were spared death was probably the biggest concern of all.

(Gato's Hideout)

"What do you mean the old man is still alive? I'm paying you all good money to kill that old fool and here you are telling me some _kids_ beat you back with their two teachers!" said Gato, as he was less then pleased with this news, and have gone on a larger rant had Sephiroth not spoken up.

"You're missing the bigger picture here Gato-san. If we killed them now, the people of Wave Country would suspect you had a hand in their death, and their fear would only increase slightly. _However_, if we kill them later in a more profound setting, then the fear the people have of you will skyrocket, and your iron grip on this area of the world will be..._secure_," said Sephiroth seeing Gato narrow his eyes at him, but the Namikaze could see the businessman's brain cogs, and wheels turning in his head.

"Can you guarantee me their death next time? All of them?" said Gato, as he saw the boy smile at him, and then chuckle like such a thing was easier then breathing.

"When the time is right, we will strike, and _then _Gato-san...you will get everything that is coming to you," said Sephiroth seeing Gato was pleased with those words and left with his two samurai thugs while having a smile on his face.

"I take it your words don't have the same meaning Gato thinks they mean," said Zabuza seeing Sephiroth once more chuckle and that damn smirk the boy had again sent chills up his spine.

"In a manner of speaking? Yes," said Sephiroth, as he left for his room, and was slightly surprised that Haku followed him to it.

"I wish to speak with you alone," said Haku, as she saw him nod, and turn to face her.

"Then speak Haku. I won't bite," said Sephiroth simply while staring at the female ice user.

"After this job is over, will you continue to be with us, or are you going to break off from us entirely?" said Haku feeling like she needed to know for some reason aside of telling Zabuza.

"Maybe. I haven't decided yet. The Leaf has every intention of taking my head the heads of anyone that joins me even for a time. You along with the others already have the Mist village hunting you down," said Sephiroth before sitting down in a nearby chair and then let out a sigh.

"You surprise me Sephiroth-san. People make you out to be a monster and yet...you're not," said Haku, as she felt that this was the real him, and not what the stories said he was.

"Maybe. Maybe not. I am a monster that is true without question, _but_ I am a monster that chooses to kill when the moment requires such things, and the same was said for my past self centuries ago. There were just more enemies back in those days then there are now in this time deserving to be annihilated," said Sephiroth seeing Haku understand in some fashion about his reasons.

"The group we fought while from the Leaf were not your true enemies," said Haku, as she could respect him for that, and for sparing the old man.

"Correct. My true enemies will make themselves known soon enough and then those that are watching will have to choose which side is the side they believe is the right one," said Sephiroth, as he looked up at Haku with calculating eyes, and saw the blush rising in her pale cheeks in the process.

"Thank you for telling me," said Haku deciding now was the best time to leave the room and did so.

"What was that Nara at the Academy once said? Ah yes. He said, 'To understand the female mind is just too troublesome and that the only thing more troublesome then trying to understand the female mind is the female in question you are trying to understand.' if I remember correctly. Perhaps there is more to that line of thought then I first realized," said Sephiroth before letting out a small laugh at the quote.

Some things were indeed too troublesome to understand.

(Hokage's Office-Several Days Later)

"SHIZUNE!" yelled Tsunade making the whole tower shake violently from her yell.

"Yes Tsunade-sama!" said Shizune rushing in knowing it was unwise to keep the woman waiting.

"Get me every available ANBU we can spare. _Right now!_" said Tsunade, as she had read the message Gai managed to get out to her, and made the female Hokage to age a few decades.

"Yes Tsunade-sama," said Shizune seeing the look in Hokage's eyes before rushing off to get the ANBU she needed.

Moments later, Yugao's ANBU squad was in the room in full battle gear, and ready to be deployed the moment the Hokage before them gave the order. Unfortunately, they were the only squad available given how others were on patrol, guarding sensitive areas, and adding additional protection to the Fire Daimyo just incase Sephiroth learned of the Feudal Lord's approval of the conspiratorial plan to keep the One-Winged Angel of Death from rising again.

"What are your orders Hokage-sama?" said Yugao wearing her Neko mask and saw the look on Tsunade's face meant that this was one of those life or death missions few walked away from.

"You're going to Wave Country for a possible two part mission. First, you need to know that Namikaze Sephiroth has encountered Teams 8, and Team 9 on their escort mission to take Tazuna back home. They are all alive, but badly injured with their wounds ranging from moderate to severe, and need to be extracted. That's the first part of your mission, which is to heal both teams before getting them out of Wave Country, and back here to properly recover. Second, you need to some reconnaissance work, and look for Namikaze Sephiroth to confirm he's still in Wave Country. Find out who he's working for, why he's working with Zabuza, and his group of rogue Missing Nins? Once you've been able to get such information, get your asses back here to report your findings so a plan of attack can be made, and we can stop this nightmare from continuing," said Tsunade, as she saw them nod, and then leave in a "poof" of smoke.

Now Tsunade just hoped she didn't just send one of her best ANBU teams to their deaths in this apparent _suicide_ mission.

(Wave Country-Tazuna's House-Several Days Later)

"I still can't believe were alive," said Tenten, as she shed mental tears for the loss of her sword, but that in itself was a small sorrow to pay in exchange for not losing any of her teammates, and wondered why the legend himself had spared them all from death.

"Me too. Fate should have declared us dead the moment Sephiroth made his way onto the battlefield," said Neji, as he was confused by this chain of events, and what it meant to him.

"That fact that Namikaze Sephiroth spared us from dying proves he is not entirely the monster we've been made to believe," said Lee seeing the shocked looks of his teammates and Team 8 near them hearing this discussion.

"How can you say that? He kicked the crap out of us without even trying!" said Kiba, as his stomach _still_ wasn't feeling right, and nearly puked earlier that morning at the mere memory of it.

"That's exactly Lee's point Kiba. Logically, someone of Sephiroth's reputation whether true or false should have wiped us out with his sword skills alone. Instead, he left us, our senseis, and the _client_ alive knowing full well that in our condition prevented any of us to defend ourselves," said Shino, as he was baffled at the actions of the enemy, and it was making his mind work at different possibilities to the reason behind the sparing of their lives.

"M-Maybe not a-all the rumors about him being a monster are true," said Hinata having received the least amount of damage from the group and had been helping in dressing everyone of their wounds.

Even Neji seemed receptive to Hinata's help, if just for the moment, and accepted her temporary medical treatment since any other Hyuuga Main family member would have looked at him with disgust.

"Maybe Hinata, but considering how badly he beat us, its clear that the vast majority of them are true, and Sephiroth is not to be underestimated again," said Kurenai, as she asked her student about the encounter she had with Sephiroth on the night the Sandaime died, and what Iruka had witnessed.

Hinata had timidly admitted to sneaking out of the Hyuuga Clan Compound to help in the capturing of the anonymously (at the time) named thief of the Forbidden Scroll of Sealing to prove she was worthy of being a Shinobi of the Leaf. How Sephiroth caught her spying on him, how he just smiled, and talked to her like she wasn't an enemy. Like he could see into her very soul.

It was scary and exciting all in one for Hinata.

"How is Tazuna holding up?" said Kiba, as he knew the old man like Hinata had been injured the least, and was walking around on his own.

"A bit shaken, but glad to be alive, and spared by Sephiroth for whatever reason he did it," said Kurenai, as she was confined to a bed from the sore neck she had suffered, and Hinata had recommended not moving so much unless something else was damaged.

"Do you think he knows where Tazuna lives?" said Tenten making the group freeze up in realization that Sephiroth could possibly know and they were trapped here while they were recovering.

"I wouldn't put it past him. But...if he did know, then...why not simply take us out now, and be done with it?" said Gai confused by Sephiroth's actions.

"There's no greater a moment then now. He has Momochi Zabuza, the Demon Brothers, and that one person still in the shadows Tazuna told us he saw throw senbon needles at Hinata. In our condition, it would be child's play to wipe us out, and the entire family in this house," said Kurenai, as she knew that they were in a no win situation, and could only hope the message for reinforcements got through.

"How do we protect Tazuna now? Technically, we've completed our mission, but the situation here was clearly more then what was asked of us, and needs to be addressed right now," said Tenten, as she was unsure how they were supposed to deal with this situation since nothing like this had ever happened before, and the only one capable of answering this was either Jounin in the room.

"She's got a point Kurenai-san. Even if we did continue somehow protect Tazuna from Sephiroth, we have to deal with the others, and none of the Genin here are capable of that regardless of their current condition," said Gai, as he knew that this was going to be difficult, and that protecting Tazuna when he went to the bridge was next to impossible should the enemy wish to kill him there.

What was Sephiroth waiting for?

(A/N: YAY! I updated. I hope you all like this. I knew the first chapter would tied you over only for so long and I figured you could enjoy the second chapter. By now I've got you jumping up and down with excitement for the next chapter. I'll see what I can do with my other fics so for those of you waiting for them be patient and hold on a little while longer. Until next time...PEACE!)


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3-Best Laid Plans

(A/N: A fellow author named Raxius has an Epic Mickey challenge on his profile he would like all of you to look at if you are interested in taking it on. Please give it a look. ENJOY!)

Haku was walking through the forest area of Wave Country, wearing civilian dress that showed off her growing womanly figure, and attracting the eyes of male teenagers around her age. She came here to explore the forest for the medicinal herbs it had to offer, not knowing when the opportunity to do so, and without having to look over her shoulder for potential threats was there. Considering the potential battle that would soon be upon them while taking this assignment...it was better to be prepared. From what Sephiroth had told them, the Leaf ANBU could prove to be a problem, but most likely they would come specifically to extract the injured group assigned to protect Tazuna, and then refocusing their efforts entirely on him.

A blush went to her cheeks at the memory of what happened in his room earlier in the morning when she walked in to check up on him per Zabuza-sama's orders.

(Flashback)

Haku knocked gently several times before slowly opening the door to Sephiroth's room to see if the young swordsman was up and about to do some scouting for the ANBU. It was planned to have Sephiroth walk around to have the Leaf ANBU show themselves with his appearance should they even be in Wave and direct them away from the other Missing Nin of the group.

The plan was to make enough noise that it would allow the Zabuza-sama, the Demon Brothers, and herself the time needed to take out the bridge builder at his home. Even if some of the group the old man traveled with were there, they would be no match for any of them, and would fall easily at their hands.

'He's not here. Did he go out already? Or is he...is he in the bathroom?' thought Haku, as she sensed warm water coming from the bathroom thanks to her bloodline limit, and was about to leave when the door to that room opened that made the girl's eyes widen with red cheeks that could make a cherry envious.

Before her eyes was Namikaze Sephiroth, currently wearing a towel, _only_ a towel around his waist, and was coming out of the steam filled room with his upper body covered in moist droplets of water. Haku could see every detail of his muscled torso, the lean arms, and long dripping wet silver hair that shined with such greatness the girl thought she was staring at something heavenly.

"You wanted something Haku?" said Sephiroth seeing the girl looking at him with the gaping look and red face.

"I-I w-was...," said Haku, as she couldn't think to form a sentence when around him, and felt her mind freeze up any logical thought while another part of the brain had become active with various _exciting_ ideas.

Ideas that involved things one found in Jiraiya's dirty orange books.

"You came to check up on me. Thank you, but there is no need. I was about to dress, and head out to continue with the plan to draw out the Leaf ANBU since they should be here soon," said Sephiroth walking towards his bed.

'Don't get dressed on my account. Wait! What did I just think?' thought Haku, as she just stared at him, and was quickly out the door when she noticed him looking at her mere seconds from removing the towel.

'Perhaps Mother should have stayed in my head a little longer to help me understand her gender more,' thought Sephiroth, as he got dressed, and put the strange look Haku had on her face out of his mind.

(End Flashback)

Haku smiled to herself at that memory, but even after looking back on it, the moment was embarrassing to the poor girl, and Zabuza-sama had instantly interrogated her after seeing the cherry red face. She could never lie to Zabuza-sama about anything no matter what, as that went against Haku's belief in protecting him from future threats, even if the threat was from herself, and told him exactly what she saw while also admitting that it excited her.

She remembered glaring at the Demon Brothers after she heard them both snickering at her and Zabuza-sama had to give the one thing he no doubt assumed would _never _be the one to give. It was the most dreaded, infamous, and _evil_ thing a grown up could do to a child coming of age into puberty known only by two words..."the talk".

Again, the Demon Brothers snickered at her expense while Zabuza-sama spoke of such things like 'puberty', 'sexual intercourse', and other horrible things tied to the emotions she felt when staring at a recently cleaned Sephiroth. Of course she got them back after Zabuza-sama finished and they were limping right now from having so many senbon ice needles poking into each of their ass cheeks while telling them they couldn't be removed without new ones taking their place.

They were just going to have to wait until each of the ice needles melted.

'Besides, I doubt Sephiroth would _never_ think of me like that, and wish to experience all those different things Zabuza-sama talked about with _me_. I'm a tool. A weapon, whose purpose is to serve only the strong, and protects them. But...Sephiroth is stronger then Zabuza-sama, right?' thought Haku, as she felt a sudden pain grip her heart, and the conflict of serving the man who made her what she is not to following that same man's teachings to serve another more powerful person.

Could she do that? If she had the opportunity to leave her Zabuza-sama's service in the upcoming battle that was surely to come soon just to follow another, would she take it? She did not deny that there were others in this world stronger then her Master, but so far had never met one that could challenge the man move for move, sword to sword, and in terms of overall skill until now with Namikaze Sephiroth. She heard how Sephiroth could command all the elements like he was an actual God, some saying he had helped in the creation to one of the three great optical bloodlines that possessed such mastery, and could make even the blood of the strongest of warriors second to him run cold with fear.

Haku knew her Master was afraid of Sephiroth, but kept it hidden to make sure the other two in their group didn't think about backstabbing him for the Angel of Death, and yet the Demon of the Mist respected more then feared the other. She had no doubt Sephiroth knew of Zabuza's fear of him, but didn't say, or do anything about it. Though Haku knew that Sephiroth would destroy Zabuza should the Demon of the Mist try to betray him and was simply going to retaliate when such betrayal happened.

It was actually a brilliant strategy if done right, as the enemy gets in close to spring their trap, but you know the trap is coming, and thus springing a trap within the trap to catch the traitor in your crosshairs before gutting the baka like a fish.

Shaking those thoughts from her head, Haku found the spot where herbs she knew would help in healing existed, but froze at the sight of another doing what appeared to be the same thing. It was that girl with the Leaf! The Hyuuga girl that Sephiroth knew from his days from before in the Leaf and yet could not kill. What was her name? Hinata! Why couldn't he seek to harm a single hair on her head? Was she some kind of threat to him? Did she possess some kind of power aside from the bloodline her clan possessed to make Sephiroth stay his hand in bringing about pain like he had brought about with the others? Cautiously, Haku continued to walk towards the girl, calculating her odds in using this opportunity to eliminate the Hyuuga with a simple choking maneuver, or perhaps a quick snap to the neck?

"Oh! I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone knew about this place," said Hinata, as she detected the person behind her while looking for herbs in this area Tazuna's daughter Tsunami had explained were known to possess healing powers if used correctly.

Knowing the current condition her teammates, as well as her sensei were in along with her cousin's team, Hinata couldn't let this opportunity pass, and requested to get the herbs knowing they weren't far away from the house in a secluded area. Kurenai was against it, but Gai being the one with seniority had told the Hyuuga girl she could on the condition she was extra careful, and use her bloodline during exploration of the area.

"It's all right. I didn't know anyone else knew about this area either. Mind if I join you?" said Haku while mentally cursing the girl's bloodline limit for detecting her and the now missed opportunity to remove the Leaf Genin from the equation.

Still...information was a nice consolation prize.

"I-I don't mind. My name is Hyuuga Hinata. Do you know this area well?" said Hinata, as she picked up an herb she needed, and saw Haku do the same.

"That is a lovely name. As for your question, the answer is no, I just learned of this spot not that long ago, and has only become a recent sanctuary to my private life. My name is Haku," said Haku while cursing herself for not having a last name to give and hoped the soon to be enemy would drop it.

"Your name is lovely too Haku. Could you help me with these herbs I need? I'm making medicine for my friends and they need this badly," said Hinata seeing Haku smile and nod.

"Your friends must have gotten into quite a fight if you need so many. What happened?" said Haku seeing the girl look hesitant in answering, no doubt instructed to keep such information a secret, and keep Gato's spies away from hearing about the groups defeat.

"There was a..._family_ _affair_ that got out of hand and now my cousin along with two of his friends he considers family are in considerable pain," said Hinata, as she didn't want to specify anything, and hoped Haku would drop it.

"That is horrible to hear Hinata. I do wish your cousin and his friends a speedy recovery with their injuries," said Haku while pretending to find some more herbs while using the morning dew from the ground to secretly come to her hand and help form an ice needle needed to stab the Hyuuga girl in the throat.

"You're lying," said Hinata, her voice becoming serious, and looking at Haku seeing the girl leap away.

"So you know. How?" said Haku though she guess it was those eyes that were the source of Hinata's discovery.

"I saw the change in your walk after you noticed me. I saw your hand on the ground was secretly molding chakra to manipulate the water, which I can only assume is a bloodline limit from a nearly destroyed clan, and would have learned to control while traveling with Zabuza," said Hinata, as she put her bag down the moment Haku leaped away, and went into Gentle Fist stance.

"Your clan's eyes are everything they've been rumored to be in terms of potential. I must also commend your skills in deducing my bloodline revolved around water from noticing the simple fact I was manipulating the morning dew to my hand. After being hit by my senbon needle in our last encounter, you must have realized it was made of ice, and saw what I was doing here to help piece it all together," said Haku, as she saw Hinata nod, and also being cautious in terms of being ambushed by the others.

"Surrender. You cannot win," said Hinata while expanding the range of her Byakugan to its limits for any of the others in Haku's group and more importantly...Sephiroth.

"Neither can you. I only need a small sample of water to make senbon needles and can by keeping my distance of your Gentle Fist Taijutsu. I have no real wish to fight you in this fashion either so I propose a temporary truce until we return to our respected camps until a much later time when we may do battle," said Haku seeing Hinata was not going to let down her guard simply because she made the offer.

"How do I know you won't try anything?" said Hinata seeing the girl smile at her.

"Not all Missing Nin are without honor. You are protecting people precious to you and I am preparing to do the same for the battles to come. Its not easy being a Missing Nin Hyuuga Hinata. We live off the land, feeding on whatever scraps we have on hand, sleep with one eye open knowing our lives could be ended by Hunter Nin at any moment if they catch us, and have to look over our shoulders during the day knowing the same could happen then too. I am using this time to prepare a means to heal those close to my heart when the time comes to heal them from their injuries just as you are gathering herbs to heal the injuries of those close to you now. Besides, if I were to make the attempt at destroying you now..._he_ would be upset with me, and no doubt end my life for my rash behavior," said Haku knowing Hinata would understand just _who_ she was talking about.

"Sephiroth," said Hinata in near whispery voice and seeing Haku nod.

"You need not fear him coming here Hyuuga Hinata. He nor anyone of my group are near here. I came like this because everyone is looking for a Missing Nin and the only way to fool people of that is to _not _be dressed like a Missing Nin," said Haku smiling at the girl in front of her and saw Hinata smile to in accepting the idea was in fact brilliant.

It was hiding in plain sight.

"When can we expect your group coming after us?" said Hinata, as she was going to get some information out of this, and would know if it was reliable.

Hopefully.

"I don't know. If anything, Sephiroth is waiting for the ANBU from Konoha he knows will be coming here, and is waiting for the right moment after that to strike," said Haku seeing Hinata's eyes widen with worry knowing that the ANBU were most likely going to come _today _if the message sent to the Hokage reached her as planned.

"They will want to extract us before they choose to engage him," said Hinata, as she saw Haku nod, and kept her guard up while the other slightly older girl walked backwards.

"He suspects as much. Still, we can't let them leave here with you, and the others of your group. At least not yet," said Haku, as she smiled mischievously at the girl, and loved how confusion was showing on Hinata's face.

"Why?" said Hinata, almost pleading with the enemy before her, and wished to know what Sephiroth was planning.

"Again, I don't know. I can understand people better they do themselves, but not even my skills of deduction have been able to get inside Sephiroth's head, and learn of what it is he is planning to do," said Haku seeing Hinata narrow her eyes in trying to determine if what she just heard was a lie.

It wasn't.

"I'll let you go then. Take what herbs you need. I'm done here," said Hinata, as she slowly lowered the one hand to pick up the bag, and took steps back away from Haku until she got enough distance between them to turn around running.

'Interesting girl. I wonder what she is to Sephiroth?' thought Haku, as she decided to take what she needed, and go back to report her findings.

(Tazuna's House-Hours Later)

"This is bad. Very bad," said Kurenai, as she sat up on the bed offered to her by the client while biting her thumb, and looked at Hinata with the girl's head down.

"I agree. Sephiroth _knew_ what we would do before it even happened," said Yugao, as she along with the others of the ANBU came in during the time Hinata was out, and healing the two groups with the Medic Nin of their group.

"Most of the injuries to each team has been healed for the most part. Their Jounin sensei aside, Team 8 is healthy enough to continue on this mission to protect the client, but all of Team 9 needs to be brought back to Konoha for further medical attention," said the ANBU wearing a boar's mask.

"Damn it!" said Yugao, as she saw her ANBU teammate give a "huh?" since he didn't understand, and Kurenai herself was shaking her own head.

"Sephiroth damaged the stronger team, the senior Jounin leading the group, and knows that we're in a lose/lose situation. Yugao told me that she's to extract us from Wave, but in doing so leaves the client a sitting duck, and will be killed before we even leave. If one Genin team stays, which will be the weaker team, then Zabuza's group will kill Tazuna after decimating the opposition," said Kurenai knowing that no matter what they did in terms of deciding how to proceed...they were doomed.

"Considering Gai is now out of it after giving him a sedative and the stab wound he has on his leg from Sephiroth's sword...how do you want to proceed? I could make it for you, but you are officially the leader now of this group, and it rest entirely on your shoulders," said Yugao, as she saw her friend sigh, and land back on the bed with her head hitting the pillow.

"Has Sephiroth been spotted around the town?" said Kurenai seeing Yugao nod.

"We did. He didn't even bother trying to hide any of his features. Many are afraid of him and giving him a wide berth while he's walking around. Its almost like he's taunting us. Its like he wants us to find him and engage him in battle," said Neko seeing Kurenai frown in thought.

"Sephiroth probably wants whatever number of ANBU were sent here to engage him at some point while Zabuza's group attacks us here at Tazuna's house. To divide and conquer us if you will," said Kurenai, as she was glad the class in strategic warfare when she was at the Academy had paid off, and helped think on _some_ level as their enemy.

Shame the class was removed due to "budget cuts" and left to Jounin senseis of Genin teams to teach this.

"Again, how do you want to proceed? Your injuries are not long term. You _could_ stay here with your team now that the ones injured in it are properly healed. The problem is, you're going into a one-sided fight, and I'm using the word 'fight' lightly," said Yugao with a clear concern in her voice.

"I know and yet...," said Kurenai unsure of what it was that seemed to fill her with hope.

"What?" said Yugao seeing the look on Kurenai's face.

"I think Sephiroth is waiting not only for the ANBU team from Konoha to arrive, but a message from us, and a way to deliver it. I also think I know how!" said Kurenai, as she hoped this was what needed to be done since she clearly remembered what Sephiroth had done to them, and had not raised his sword to kill them like they all thought he would.

Injure them? Yes. Kill them. No.

"What do you have in mind?" said Yugao, as she was all ears, and saw the grin on the Jounin's face.

"I need a pen, paper, and..._Akamaru_," said Kurenai, as she knew Kiba was going to hate this, but if this worked out the way she planned...they may get out of this alive, and in one piece.

(With Sephiroth)

The young warrior smiled to himself, as his plans were coming to fruition with the plan he had created, and set in motion to bring about the enemies around him together. To weed them out, to gather them in one spot, and then decide _who _among them were his true enemies before removing such scum from this world.

He sensed the ANBU from Konoha watching him. How they tried to conceal themselves by acting like the people here, but couldn't due to their faces not showing the same kind of suffering the natives of Wave Country had, and could easily remove them with a flick of his wrist. But where would the fun be in that? Besides, their deaths were not part of the plan, and to diverge from it now would be bad for all parties.

A barking sound of a dog quickly caught his attention before turning slightly to see the dog Kiba had with him when they fought in the forest.

'So they sent the _dog_ to be their messenger. Interesting,' thought Sephiroth, as he saw the paper on Akamaru's collar, and took it before motioning for the animal to leave while he read the message.

_We need to talk. All of us. Meet us at the bridge tomorrow._

_Yuhi Kurenai-Jounin Sensei of Team 8_

"So they put her in charge. One again I'm interested," said Sephiroth smiling to himself before letting out a small chuckle and then left the town to report this to Zabuza.

(With Zabuza)

"You think it's a trap?" said Zabuza knowing it could be if the opposition used a _dog_ to deliver a message.

"No. Well...not _entirely_ a trap anyway. But that's not what Gato will think after we let him know we're going to the bridge tomorrow to take care of Tazuna and the others. We need him to think this is the perfect opportunity to destroy all of us in one moment that he won't dare pass up," said Sephiroth seeing Zabuza nod since Haku had infiltrated Gato's hideout after gathering herbs and had learned of the businessman's plan to not pay them what he owed.

"This could still go bad for us," said Zabuza, as he didn't like this, and the others were in full agreement.

"This is part of the risks that come with your profession Zabuza or have you forgotten?" said Sephiroth hearing Zabuza growl at him under those bandages.

"I haven't forgotten. I just want us to get out of it alive. I have an ambition to achieve and its kind of hard to do it if I'm dead," said Zabuza seeing Sephiroth nod in understanding.

There is much to risk depending on the ambitious goals one wishes to accomplish.

(Incomplete Bridge)

"You think he'll show up with the others?" said Kiba, as he was glad Akamaru made it back in one piece, and feared the worst.

"I don't know Kiba, but stay sharp all the same, and keep an eye out for anything," said Kurenai, as she looked to Hinata, and saw she was nervous in meeting Sephiroth a third time.

"They're here," said Shino seeing the mist roll in unnaturally around them.

"You didn't bring your ANBU buddies with you. Brave, but foolish," said Zabuza, as he appeared with his group in front of them, and Sephiroth appearing from behind.

"We had to ensure the client and our remaining Genin team were kept safe until this was over," said Kurenai, as she glanced behind her at Sephiroth, and saw his face showed no indication of arrogant joy in hurting Genin Team 9 she half expected from him.

"That was a smart move considering they are not capable of fighting here today beside you should we wish to fight," said Sephiroth, as he took a few steps toward them, and saw the Aburame along with the Inuzuka focus on him.

"But you don't," said Kurenai simply.

"Hence why we're here. The mist Zabuza has created is merely to keep Gato from seeing what we're doing. As far as he's concerned, we are currently fighting to the death, and no doubt has a small army of thugs with him to take us all down in our _weakened condition_," said Sephiroth smoothly seeing Kurenai frowning at him and then looking at Zabuza to see him nodding too.

"So this whole plan was to take down Gato? But...you work for him?" said Kiba before he scratched his head in confusion.

"We did. But then Sephiroth felt we should keep ourselves open to the idea of keeping an eye on Gato in case the bastard tried to backstab us. After Haku met your female student, I had her go do a little infiltration at Gato's base, and she overheard him planning to have us all killed so he could collect the bounty on our heads. As it turns out, my silver haired friend behind you is worth more then all of us put together, and Gato would not doubt wish to make some money by profiting from our demise. And I do mean _all _of us," said Zabuza with disgust at how greedy the man was just to get money.

"How do we know you won't try anything while we wait for your trap to be set?" said Kurenai knowing she only had a few seconds to cast a Genjutsu to get her team off the bridge to safety.

"If I wanted to kill you Kurenai-san, I would have done it back when we first fought, and simply completed the act we were hired to do," said Sephiroth seeing the woman nod her head knowing such a thing was true.

While this was happening, Haku focused on Hinata staring back at her with the Byakugan eyes, and a look of intense strength she had never seen in the timid girl before. Sephiroth seemed to believe that this girl from the Hyuuga Clan showed great potential, but from what Haku could see, it was restrained by something inside, and only the silver haired swordsman seemed capable of bringing it out.

'What are you to him? What is he to you?' thought Haku, as she didn't know why her mind was even asking these things, and wondered what this feeling was in her chest into thinking the two could be more then she first thought?

Was she..._jealous_? No! It couldn't be. Why should she even be jealous of this Hyuuga girl for something that may not even exist? Why did she even care that? A tool does not become jealous! A tool does not feel jealousy!

And yet...this feeling within Haku's heart was the only thing the word seemed accurate when it came to describing such a thing. Did she want to feel that connection to the silver haired warrior of an Angel too? Twice, it seemed this Hyuuga girl could have been slain by Sephiroth's hands, and twice she was spared death by him. Why? WHY?

"Haku! Control yourself. You're leaking killer intent all over the place. Its putting the Leaf Shinobi on edge," said Zabuza, as he didn't know why Haku was getting this way, but it was freaking him out, and no doubt doing the same to Team 8.

"Sorry Zabuza-sama," said Haku before doing as he asked.

'That girl wearing the mask named Haku. She was so angry mere moments ago and it was aimed mostly at Hinata. Why?' thought Kurenai seeing her student was shaken, but would not bend to the masked girl's anger, and steadied herself.

"Zabuza, its time. Kill the mist," said Sephiroth while looking at Zabuza, then Haku for a second, and manifested Masamune to his hand.

"Right," said Zabuza, as he did just that, and sure enough Gato was standing there with his goons, and looking rather smug.

"Well Zabuza it seems for all your boastful talk, you are just a little baby demon in a big demon's world, and can't handle what needs to be done. Even the rumored Namikaze Sephiroth on your side, the bridge builder lived, and the Leaf Shinobi are all alive. How disappointing. Then again, you get what you pay for, and I think I'll get my refund from your hide. I'm sure the Mizukage in Mist would _love_ to have a word with you and the Demon Brothers. Not to mention the Leaf village is also willing to pay big money to just about _anyone _capable of bringing down the _supposed _One-Winged Angel of Death who killed the Sandaime Hokage. Personally, I never believed those rumors about you having a angel's wing, and think you're probably just some _freak_ half bird experiment that went wrong," said Gato with his thugs laughing with him.

"Such a foolish person you are Gato. You were so eager to see us near death and not pay Zabuza his fee...that you didn't even bother to notice that we're all very healthy," said Sephiroth walking towards Gato and his thugs.

"What?" said Gato, as he noticed that Zabuza was uninjured, same with Haku, and the Demon Brothers were in fact Water Clones of Zabuza under a henge.

"Even now, the Demon Brothers are raiding your base, and seizing all your finances that you possess. By the time they are done, you won't have a single form of currency to your name, and won't have the means to even pay the boat man across the River Styx after you are killed" said Sephiroth, as his smile left his face, and a cold serious one now filled with anger had made itself known while his power seemed to radiate around his body.

"Is it me or does Sephiroth look angry to you?" said Kiba to Shino, who was shaking now from what he felt, and Akamaru below them was whimpering in fear.

"He looks angry," said Shino, as he heard his remaining insects crying out inside the hive that was part of his body, and feeling their fear of this man-_no_...this _God_ that was barely 10 feet from them.

"Kill the freak! You'll get triple your usual pay," said Gato, as he saw the thugs hungry for cash, and triple the amount was something they couldn't pass up.

As one they charged.

_SLASH!_

As one they fell...into a big bloody mess.

'He is a God amongst swordsmen,' thought Zabuza, as he saw Sephiroth was behind the now bloody mess of bodies, and staring directly at Gato currently on his knees begging for his life.

"Don't kill me! I'll give you whatever you want. I have connections. Strong connections to any country you want to go. They all owe me favors and can grant you sanctuary from your pursuers. Zabuza too!" said Gato hoping that this monster before him would show mercy and spare his life.

"Such false acts of groveling at my feet. How I hate people like you. At least when I got this from Tazuna, his words were pure, and true when he begged me to spare his life. I granted his wish for that reason due to it having merit and what he was asking of me was to help a noble cause in restoring hope to an otherwise hopeless place. You don't know the meaning of the word mercy Gato because you have never granted it and never wanted to give it. In my eyes, you have been weighed, you have been measured, and you have been found..._wanting_!" said Sephiroth before walking away from the business man and not even looking back to see Zabuza behind Gato while ignoring the sound of sword now slicing through flesh with the _thump_ sound that followed with the fool's head hitting the ground.

"Good riddance," said Zabuza knowing how things could have turned out had Sephiroth nod been with them during this whole event.

"And now that just leaves..._you_!" said Sephiroth, as he looked at Team 8, and saw them tense his words.

"What about us? We're not your enemies anymore," said Kurenai, as she could tell the masked girl was itching for a fight with Hinata, and just might get it should Sephiroth or Zabuza give the word.

"That is correct. However, those you serve _are _my enemies, and thus creates a problem for me," said Sephiroth, as he walked up to Haku, and put a hand on her shoulder to make the girl calm herself.

"We serve the Hokage!" said Kurenai simply in a defiant tone.

"I know you do. However, its whom the _Hokage_ serves that bothers me, and those that are loyal to people like him. You see, the Kyuubi has shown me some very interesting memories the past couple of nights in connection to him being sealed into my body, and has shown me just _who_ in the Leaf are my true enemies," said Sephiroth, as the fox had heard all the Council members arguing with the Clan Heads about what to do with him after the sealing happened mere hours ago, and heard the voices of the Toad Sannin Jiraiya talking to the Sandaime about how the highest authority in Fire Country that was the Fire Daimyo himself giving them all approval.

"So what does that mean for us?" said Kiba not know whether to attack or to flee.

"You will leave Wave Country after this bridge is completed. Then you will tell your Hokage the mission was a success and the old man is no longer in danger," said Sephiroth knowing that they would tell the Hokage everything about what happened here.

"And what about you? Even if you leave here, Leaf Shinobi along with every enemy your Father made in the past will come out of the woodwork, and attempt to destroy you," said Kurenai, as she knew from what Yugao said that Sephiroth was now public enemy #1 in almost every part of the Elemental Countries.

"That's not your business Yuhi Kurenai. I suggest you focus on the business at hand and that is looking after your students. Especially _you_ Hyuuga Hinata,?" said Sephiroth, as he pointed at Hinata, and saw the shock on everyone's faces.

"Me?" said Hinata, as she was nervous in being in his presence, but to be acknowledge by him was something else entirely, and for what reason still baffled her.

"Yes. Out of all the members of your Genin team, _you_ have the greatest potential of all, and I sense it is just _begging_ to come out," said Sephiroth seeing Hinata blushing slightly at his praise and sensed Haku was slowly increasing her killer intent again.

A quick look in the female ice users direction stopped that.

'What could he mean by greatest potential?' thought Kurenai, as she knew Hinata had the ability to be a great Shinobi, but Sephiroth made it sound like the Hyuuga girl could one day be Hokage, or at the very least an ANBU Captain.

"Until we meet again. Come Haku," said Sephiroth, as he turned his back to them, and Haku obediently followed though he sensed the girl wanted to look back to quickly glare at Hinata.

"We should kill them now. Make an example out of them for the Leaf," said Haku, which surprised herself with such words, and wondered why she was suddenly filled with the need to spill blood.

Was this because she was jealous of the Hyuuga girl's praise received from Sephiroth?

"We will do no such thing to them Haku. There is a time and place for spilling blood. Our time here doing that is over," said Sephiroth with a tone of a scolding teacher in his voice, as they left Genin Team 8 on the bridge, and went to see what the Demon Brothers were up to at Gato's base.

(Konoha-Hokage's Office-Several Days Later)

Senju Tsunade was not pleased with the report given to her by Kurenai and even less by the ANBU Captain she entrusted to keep things from getting out of hand. The first part of mission given to Neko's ANBU squad had been for the most part only _half _successful and didn't expect the situation to spiral out of control. Granted both teams _and_ Tazuna lived through the situation, but it was enough to give Tsunade grey hairs behind the Genjutsu she put around herself.

The complexity behind her Godson's actions were also baffling too, as she read how the boy had created the illusion of being employed by Gato to kill the bridge builder, only to be the businessman's very downfall, and assisted in his death with Zabuza performing the killing slice. What's more was Sephiroth, along with his new allies had commandeered Gato's Yacht to leave Wave Country while Team 8 had to wait until the bridge was fully complete, and give the silver haired swordsman a good head start to Kami knows where.

Even more disturbing was how her Godson interacted with Hyuuga Hinata on the bridge and how the masked girl named Haku seemed to be angry at such interaction. Going over Hinata's file, Tsunade didn't know if what Sephiroth saw was actually in the girl, but her Jounin sensei seemed to think there was _something _to the One-Wing Angel's claims, and the female Hokage decided to look into this herself.

Hence why the timid girl was sitting in a chair in her office.

"Do you know why you're here Hyuuga Hinata?" said Tsunade looking at the Hyuuga girl trying to sit up straight in her chair in front of the leader of the Leaf village.

"I-I respectfully do not Hokage-sama," said Hinata knowing that being in the presence of _the_ most experienced Medic Nin now Hokage in all of Konoha for a personal meeting was a great honor.

"You are here because I went over the mission report your sensei along with Gai gave me. I found it to be very..._enlightening_ reading material though not all of it was pleasing to read given what happened. What I did find interesting was how your medical creams and knowledge of herbs helped in the healing of both groups. It seems you have a skill for the healing arts," said Tsunade with a hint of pride in her voice knowing that it was so rare to find such a rare skill in one so young.

"T-Thank you H-Hokage-sama. M-My clan doesn't r-really s-seem to t-think so," said Hinata feeling depressed at the memory of the Hyuuga Elders sneering in contempt at the thought of using the Byakugan to help heal others.

_The Hyuuga Clan is a clan of invincible elite warriors. __**Not**__ nursemaids. To speak of such things is heresy and will not be allowed._

"Oh really? Well, you can tell your family, I think you have great potential that is not going to waste, and if they still don't like it then they can be reminded that Namikaze Sephiroth himself thinks so too," said Tsunade smirking at the thought of those snooty Hyuuga Elders being put in their place knowing that to denounce Hinata would bring about the fear of their words reaching the One-Wing Angel of Death and him paying them all a visit.

"Y-You know about that?" said Hinata blushing at the praise from Tsunade and the memory of Sephiroth stating she had such potential to do great things.

"By now, its spread throughout the entire village, and will no doubt get you _a lot _of attention from people," said Tsunade seeing Hinata being nervous about that, which would have to be corrected soon, and the female Hokage knew how.

"I-I don't think I'm special," said Hinata seeing the Hokage frown.

"We'll I think you are and so does the last Namikaze gone rogue. Not to mention your team along with Gai's truly appreciated what you did for them. In fact, how would you like to learn from me in being a Medic Nin? _Personally_!" said Tsunade knowing it would get her out of the office and away from the damn paperwork.

"A-As in being your a-a-apprentice?" said Hinata in surprise knowing such an honor was given only to one other person currently outside the room.

"Yes. Your Byakugan combined with what I've seen here in this report regarding the medical creams shows a potential that is borderline in being that of a prodigy if not that. Now while I have my own dislike for prodigies due to them being arrogant, I see none of that in you, and would like to see what someone with your potential Hyuuga Hinata can do under my teachings," said Tsunade seeing the girl slowly nod her head before doing the one thing that came naturally to her shocked mind.

Hyuuga Hinata...fainted.

(Underneath Konoha-Root HQ)

Danzo scowled hard despite the pain he was under from his old battle wounds and the surgery done to him to achieve what was done to him. Inside his bandaged face was the Sharingan eye of Uchiha Shisui, having been acquired after the man's death, and his right arm had been given the power of the Shodaime's Senju bloodline thanks to Orochimaru's experimental research on the matter with Sharingan eyes surgically implanted into the arm. These two combined would have given the leader of the _officially _disbanded Root organization the power to control the Kyuubi at will, making the fox become enraged when desired, and calmed when needed to be calmed.

In truth, Danzo would have wielded power of a Godly force, and thus making him a God amongst men to lead his vision of ruling over the Elemental Countries. However, such a vision was no longer possible now with the fox vessel no longer in the village to even try anything, and even then the influential power behind these two bloodlines may no longer be able to influence this new threat. It wasn't the first time that Danzo had cursed the late Sandaime for not giving him the boy to mold into a weapon and now realized that his old rival feared that such an action would possibly bring forth the old prophecy involving Sephiroth's return to the world.

"Sai!" said Danzo before his loyal Root agent came forward.

"Yes Danzo-sama," said Sai seeing the old man looking at him with his natural eye now narrowed at him.

"How is the Uchiha fairing in his training with Team 7?" said Danzo, as he used the hole Sephiroth created to get Sai into Team 7, and keep an eye on the Uchiha.

"Not well Danzo-sama. The Uchiha is arrogant. He constantly demands people train him in their Shinobi arts so he can become more powerful. In fact, it was only because of my assistance in the bell test that Kakashi even had an excuse to pass our team, and begin our training," said Sai knowing that the Uchiha's development had taken priority now that the weapon Danzo wanted was no longer capable of being his to command.

"I see. What of your third teammate? This...Haruno Sakura," said Danzo looking at the file in front of him though it was pretty slim.

"She is cannon fodder at best Danzo-sama. Haruno Sakura fully expects the Last Uchiha to save her when trouble happens. She has book smarts from what I've learned from the time spent at the Academy, but no real physical training due to Sakura's Father being on the Council, and the Mother spoiling the pink haired girl silly," said Sai, as he had done his information digging well, and knew to keep _nothing_ out of his report.

"Very well. Keep me informed. My Root agents will see to it that certain missions the _Hokage_ gives out require Hatake Kakashi and Team 7 to help stimulate the Uchiha in a way to unlock his Sharingan," said Danzo, as he originally had planned for that C-rank mission to Wave Country go to Team 7, but Tsunade had decided against it, and sent two other Genin teams instead.

"As you wish Danzo-sama," said Sai before leaving his Master.

(With Sephiroth)

"So you want to part ways from us," said Zabuza simply at the One-Winged Angel of Death seeing him staring out at the sea of water before them with an unreadable face.

"It can't be helped. If what Yuhi Kurenai said is indeed true, then I am now the most wanted man in all of the Elemental Countries, and everyone will want to have a piece of me," said Sephiroth with his hands behind his back looking at the water's surface.

"Yeah, I suppose it can't be helped is the correct thing to say. The only upside from this, is that the Mizukage will be distracted, and send most of his Shinobi forces away from _us_ over time to come after you. By that point, who knows what will happen, and if I can overthrow the bastard to call off the hunting," said Zabuza before seeing the sad look in Haku's eyes.

"Yes. By that point, I will have no choice, but to show my enemies what it means to cross me, and to defy what _cannot_ be defied," said Sephiroth, as he thought about his Mother, and what she told him before the transformation into what he was now.

"I would pay good money to see that," said Zabuza letting out a laugh knowing the boy's enemies were in for a whole lot of trouble when facing him.

"I imagine you would Zabuza. Until then, I must take my leave of you, and say goodbye for now," said Sephiroth, as he created the one white angelic wing from his back, and began to ascend to the air while ignoring the shocked looks from the four people around him.

"Sephiroth wait!" said Haku, as she latched onto him, and stopped his rise to the sky above.

"Haku! Get off of him!" said Zabuza, as he sure hoped this wasn't Haku acting boy crazy, and wanting to be with the kid.

"What is it Haku?" said Sephiroth, as he slowly descended back down, and looked the slightly older girl in the eyes.

"I-I just...I-I w-wanted t-to um...please take me with you!" said Haku just came out saying what she felt, as she couldn't hold off in asking him, and saw the raised eyebrow that showed his surprise.

"Haku!" said Zabuza shocked that Haku would ask Sephiroth this.

"Why?" said Sephiroth while ignoring Zabuza.

"I don't know. I just feel deep down that I should. I feel _compelled_ to join you. I'm not weak! I won't slow you down and if I do...you can kill me," said Haku ignoring Zabuza words to let go of the winged boy and to regain her sanity.

"Are you sure? The pace I set is very demanding. Do you think you can keep up?" said Sephiroth, as he had proven that already, and even now it took a considerable amount of Haku's energy to keep up with him in terms of plans.

"I have a good reference and like I said...if I slow you down you can kill me," said Haku, as she wasn't afraid to off her life up since it was already offered every time when serving Zabuza, and was nothing new in terms of a price.

"Zabuza? What do you think?" said Sephiroth, as he looked from Haku to the Demon of the Mist, and saw several different emotions going through the man's head while the two Demon Brothers were a little nervous in possibly seeing them duke it out while they were currently in the middle the ocean.

"In all honesty? I don't know what I can tell you. Haku is her own person despite all the training I've pounded into that skull of hers to say otherwise in being my tool I can throw away on a whim. I taught her all I could in being a Shinobi, but she's never killed anyone with this knowledge, and yet has been invaluable to me when I needed her most," said Zabuza, as he saw Haku look back at him with joy in her eyes, and while the whole "she's never killed anyone" was a possible problem for Sephiroth it seemed the silver haired warrior didn't mind.

"Do you still need her by your side?" said Sephiroth knowing that if Haku still had value to Zabuza it would be best to have her stay with the Demon of the Mist.

"No. I don't need her with me. The money we got from raiding Gato's base is more then enough to finance what we need to overthrow the Mizukage. Plus, we left a nice chunk with the people of Wave Country so they can get out of their economic stump they're in, and hopefully will be willing to open up some trade with Mist once I'm Mizukage," said Zabuza, as he saw Sephiroth smiling in approval, and knew it was from thinking ahead.

"You're learning to think more with your brain then with your sword. Nicely done. As for you Haku, it seems I have found myself a partner, and thus you now belong to me," said Sephiroth seeing the girl hug him tighter while he raised an eyebrow at Zabuza currently giving him a shrug.

'She's not my problem anymore. Not that she was one to begin with. If anyone was the problem it was me and way of doing things when it came to clients. I just hope Haku doesn't become pregnant from this soon after I have her 'the talk'. I still can't believe I was the one to give her that,' thought Zabuza, as he wondered if a part of him was getting soft, and saw Haku like a daughter.

"I won't let you down Sephiroth-sama. I _will_ make you proud of me," said Haku, as she looked back at Zabuza, and whispered "thank you" to him before she felt herself leaving the ground into the sky.

To what location only the One-Wing Angel of Death knew.

(A/N: YAY! Another quick update. Damn I'm tired now. LOL! I've been getting a lot of mixed reviews recently regarding this fic. Most of them sort of the negative ones from anonymous people (you guys all suck!), but some are not, and feel that because I turned Naruto into Sephiroth its not really Naruto anymore. WTF! It's called _reincarnation_ and that means if Naruto is becomes the reincarnation of someone then he has the right to take on the name of whoever _I_ want him too! You don't like it THEN DON'T READ! As for the rest of you, I thank you for your continuous praise, and support of this fic. Until next time...PEACE!)


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4-Confrontation

(A/N: Hey everybody! For those of you who are SupermanxWonder Woman fans, go to the comic section, and go to DC Elseworlds. There is an awesome well written fic there titled Rise My Last Son that rocks big time. Badass Superman when he's still Clark Kent and his Kryptonian God is Rao is in the mix too! Check it out. ENJOY!)

Sephiroth descended upon the ground of the land before him, as he set Haku onto the ground, and looked at the area he was in. Fortunately, Haku had traveled over the years to various places of the Elemental Countries with Zabuza, and knew that the Land of Sea was a place that Leaf Shinobi barely ever went. In fact, it was such a minor country that the chances of them being spotted by agents of the Leaf, or anyone else would be slim to none.

"So this is the Land of Sea. It doesn't look like much," said Sephiroth, as he studied the area around him, but could see why it would be a suitable location, and safe place to hide.

For a time.

"I hope it will suffice for the moment Sephiroth-sama," said Haku, as she knew that the warrior before her was trusting her judgment, and choice in location to hide from their enemies.

"I'm sure it will. We just need to acquire some living accommodations," said Sephiroth, as he saw a village nearby in the distance, and began walking towards it before stopping to look at Haku.

"What is it Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku worriedly at his gaze.

"You will need to change into your civilian clothing. If they see you in your current attire, they will suspect something, and word will one day reach the Leaf," said Sephiroth seeing the girl stiffen and quickly reach for the scroll that contained her clothes before she froze again realizing that the area around them had little to no privacy to change.

"Um...could I perhaps have a chance to change in private Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku, as she blushed behind her mask, and hoped the angelic boy didn't make her change in front of him.

"Of course. That boulder over there should suffice," said Sephiroth seeing the large rock near her that seemed large enough for the girl to change.

Quick as a flash, Haku was behind it changing quietly, and almost as quickly she was in her civilian clothing with the once tied up hair now down past her shoulders. The silver haired man smirked at how Haku seemed to glow while walking towards him and with pride in her step as they headed towards the town.

If Sephiroth didn't know any better, he would think Haku was acting like she was now walking with her future husband, and was happy about the arrangement. But that was absurd.

Right?

As the two walked into the town, they saw the place was a little better off then what Wave Country had gone through with Gato, and yet they were still doing much better regardless of the comparison. Still, the people looked depressed, and suffering from the effects of something in the land that was unhealthy to their lifestyle.

The two wondered what was causing harm when the answer appeared before their eyes when a group of people started a attacking a girl covered in bandages with rocks, bottles, and calling her names. The bandaged girl was trying to dodge them, but there were too many projectiles, and too many people throwing them. The moment froze Sephiroth in his tracks, as memories of his life living in that false shell of a body, and going by the name Uzumaki Naruto entered his mind. Moments like these in the Leaf, actions from people like these in the Leaf, and the current victim of suggest oppression being like him when he was in the Leaf.

It was inexcusable.

"Get out of here monster. Its because of you our country has been slowly dying!" said one person throwing a rock.

"It's because of you I lost my husband!" said angry irate woman holding a club trying to hit the girl and break one of her limbs.

"Die freak!" yelled out another with a knife.

"Sephiroth-sama, we can't let her suffer like this!" said Haku, as she saw some of her life in that moment with her Father killing her Mother, and then his attempt on herself before the activating of her bloodline that caused the man's death.

"No Haku we can't. But at the same time, our intervention will spread word of us, and bring about problems," said Sephiroth, as he frowned before thinking up a way to save the girl, and walked towards the mob while silently signaling Haku to stay behind to watch.

"Time to die fiend!" said a man ready to strike the girl with a broken sake' bottle, but was stopped when he felt his body freeze, and saw other people around him freezing up too.

"W-what?" said the girl, as she looked around, and saw the people appeared to be frozen in time.

"Don't think. Just run!" said Sephiroth whispered through the crowd knowing that the mob of people couldn't see him, and kept his identity safe in their paralyzed state thanks to his Paralysis Spell.

The bandaged girl, who was not going to look a gift horse in the mouth, ran away from the frozen mob, and past a girl she had never seen before. After that happened, Sephiroth made his way back to Haku, who was smiling at him, and he motioned for her to follow.

They followed the girl to a small house by a beach quite a distance from town and from what they saw, the person of interest to them didn't have any footwear, and probably had sore feet. The house itself was more like a shack and with enough severe weather could fall to pieces while burying the person inside of it alive.

"Why do you think this girl is hated Sephiroth-sama? Is she someone like you? Or does she possibly possess a bloodline like myself?" said Haku, as she saw the calculating look on her Master's face, and she was sure he was thinking the same thing.

"I don't know Haku. Whatever the reason, we will learn of it, and deal with the problem accordingly," said Sephiroth with his voice cold and promising pain to whatever was the source of this girl's problems.

"What if it is the girl herself?" said Haku, as there was a small _very _small chance that this girl was the source of the lands suffering, and was somehow taking the abuse to further some evil scheme.

Again the chance of that being was _very _small.

"Pray it never comes to that," said Sephiroth, as they walked to the shack, and he sensed the bandaged girl was there before she came out with a scowl on her face.

"I've never seen either of you here before. Are you assassins? Someone the people hired to kill me?" said the bandaged girl.

"We are something similar to what you described us to be though we are not here to take your life," said Sephiroth seeing the girl tense in their presence, and wondered if she had heard something like this before with someone else?

"Your voice. It was you. You somehow saved me from that mob. Why?" said the girl having recognized the boy's voice and the slightly older girl beside him when running.

"I'll tell you if you tell me your name and why you're being persecuted by these fools," said Sephiroth seeing the bandaged girl look scared for a moment then glared at him.

"My name is none of your business and neither is the reason why they hate me. Now leave me alone!" said the girl before storming back into her home.

"What should we do now Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku whispering to Sephiroth after seeing her Master turn away from the shack in thought.

"Go back into the village. Find out what you can before reporting back here without being followed. I will stay here and observe our mystery girl to see what happens," said Sephiroth seeing Haku nod knowing that she could no doubt use her charms to get more then enough information out of the people in town.

Turning back to the shack, Sephiroth narrowed his eyes before walking away to a more strategic position to watch the area without interruption, and without the wounded girl from knowing. One way or another, he would learn the truth in what made this girl a supposed "monster", and would seek to fix this situation.

(Konoha-At the Moment)

"Did you hear? The monster attacked Genin Team 8 and Genin Team 9 on their C-ranked mission!" said a Shinobi talking to a civilian.

"Yes. It's amazing they even survived. I hear the Hyuuga Heiress wasn't even harmed by it at all. Like she had some kind of power over him," said another person having heard about it from someone else.

"Do you think the Hyuuga Heiress may have some form of Senju blood in her? It was said they had the power to stop demons. Maybe that power applies to _it_ too?" said another Shinobi with more people talking about it all over the village with great passion.

The only one not liking the story was Uchiha Sasuke, who began to interrogate his fellow Leaf Shinobi involved in the mission about it, and got their version of things. For the most part, Sasuke was not impressed by what had happened, and even said that Sephiroth was not as strong like everyone claimed him to be if he didn't kill six Genin or their two Jounin senseis. Surprisingly, each Genin defended Sephiroth's actions not because the swordsman spared their life, but rather chose to kill only when it was the best time to kill, and whom he wanted to that would benefit his needs. Even Gai along with Kurenai had expressed a need to defend Sephiroth's actions in sparing their lives for similar reasons and that the One-Winged Angel of Death was indeed the master tactician all the legends behind his story claimed he had been centuries ago.

Each move was calculated to bring about the desire Sephiroth wished to achieve, which had resulted in restricted reinforcements from the Leaf, Gato's death, and new life being breathed into Wave Country. Another thing that couldn't be overlooked was Momochi Zabuza now had the finances needed to fund an army against the Mizukage and take over Mist with those inside that oppose the man's rule. If and when Zabuza took over Mist, he would no doubt welcome Sephiroth to the village, as an honored, _and_ a powerful ally.

What concerned the Councils however, was the rumored information about Zabuza's ice using bloodline apprentice no longer being with the Demon of Mist, and possibly decided to travel with Sephiroth to be his secret weapon. Some feared that the girl would be used for more in terms of having the silver haired boy's child in the distant future and bring about an even greater threat then what they were facing now. The governing body of the Leaf had argued for what seemed like hours on how to deal with this little development and had not come to a conclusion on the matter. Some said the female ice user should be captured to be forced into a breeding program to bring such a bloodline into the Leaf since it was clear the Mizukage would kill the girl should she be returned to the Mist. Others said to use her against Sephiroth, to force the boy into a situation where the girl could be used to control the swordsman, and bend him to their will. Some suggested to kill her to make Sephiroth suffer if he had some kind of romantic attachment to the girl and bring about agonizing pain.

Tsunade suggested they leave the girl (they refused to call her by name) Haku alone, as such actions would no doubt send Sephiroth into a rage, and obliterate the Leaf off the map like the angelic figure had done centuries ago to a place twice the size of Konoha in the past. The Clan Heads were also for that option too, as they believed Haku would quite possibly be Sephiroth's conscious overtime, and maybe even soothe the bloodlust in his heart. Instead of fanning the flames like the Councils wanted, they along with the Hokage believed Haku could _slowly_ cause them to die out, and leave the Leaf if not the world alone.

"How's your cousin doing Neji?" said Tenten, as she was walking with her teammate, and seeing his scowling a little bit more then ever.

"She is doing fine. Hinata-sama is expected to begin training soon under the Hokage in the medical arts soon and be her apprentice," said Neji, as he was internally grateful for his cousin's actions, but his pride along with years of humiliation of the Branch family at the hands of the Main family prevented himself from expressing his thanks.

"Really? Wow! I knew Hinata-san did a first rate job healing us, but to be _acknowledged_ by Tsunade-sama _herself_ is really something, and...oh I would just _kill_ for that honor!" said Tenten, as she saw Tsunade to be an idol in terms of what female Shinobi should be, and not those silly fan girls always chasing the Uchiha just to get into his pants.

"Yes. Hinata-sama herself was quite surprised by this honor given by the Hokage. Most of my clan however, is not thrilled by this news, and is seeking to prevent it," said Neji, as he felt conflicted about the Hyuuga Elders actions in wanting Hinata to not be a medic, and for the reasons they stated.

"What? Are they nuts? It was because of your cousin's skills we didn't come back to the Leaf a crippled mess! Your cousin could become the _first _among the new Medic Nins I heard Tsunade wants to integrate into teams to lower casualty rates when on missions. Don't take this the wrong way Neji, but your clan is really narrow minded, and are acting like a bunch of bakas. Present company excluded of course," said Tenten, as she saw Neji's scowl deepen, and hoped he didn't take it the wrong way.

"I'm not offended Tenten. There are times I feel my clan needs to change if we are to survive in these changing times, but those in charge of the clan know that they will lose power, and people with power don't surrender it so easily," said Neji knowing that all those in the Main family feared two things and one of them was being branded with the Cage Bird Seal to make themselves a Branch member of the clan.

"What do you think of your cousin's opportunity?" said Tenten while hoping Neji would think it was something positive for Hinata embrace since she knew the girl was shy.

"It's a great honor like you said Tenten, as many would kill for the honor to be taught by Senju Tsunade, and Hinata-sama seems to qualified to learn without her being from the Hyuuga Main family influencing such a decision," said Neji while trying to stamp on the feeling of regret in hating his cousin since it was clear Hinata had field that she could become good at.

"Did you tell her how proud you were?" said Tenten seeing Neji shake his head no.

"It is not my place to congratulate Hinata-sama for I am of the Branch family and even if it was my place there is a chance my actions could be frowned upon by some of the Main family," said Neji knowing his position was double edged right now.

"You are unbelievable Neji!" said Tenten before walking away from him with an angry look on her face.

'Why must Fate be cruel?' thought Neji knowing this would bite him in the ass later when their team formed again for training or a mission.

Not that far away, Nara Shikamaru was eating at Choji's favorite BBQ restaurant with said Akimichi and teammate Yamanaka Ino with the platinum blonde girl watching with disgust at how much her fa-_big boned_ teammate could eat so much. Ino herself wanted to keep her body from becoming like that and kept herself on a diet that she felt would help keep it from becoming a thing of horror.

"What's on your mind Shikamaru? Not even you eat lazily here," said Ino, as she would admit the food was good, even if it wasn't entire in diet format, and watching the Nara frown in frustration.

"Naruto. Or I guess the more proper name for him would be Sephiroth," said Shikamaru, as he found the whole situation eating at his mind, and it was becoming increasingly hard to want to stare a clouds instead of think.

"What about him?" said Ino, as she knew that despite Shikamaru's laziness, the boy was a genius at heart, and just needed the right motivation to work his mind properly.

"It's not him personally Ino. It's what he did in Wave Country. My dad brought home a copy of the mission report home for me to look at. He basically tested me on the damn thing and I ran through the scenario the way he described different things that occurred. Everything from the terrain, key moments during their first battle, after the battle, and see into the reasoning why Sephiroth let two Genin teams along with the client live. I never saw it coming. I thought they were done for sure the moment my old man told me how Genin Team 9 was wiped out in a single moment, Team 8 soon following, and then their senseis following suit. Each of them were taken down by one person, Zabuza didn't lift a finger, and the only thing he did was help plan the diversion to make the Genins of the group show what they could do. The client was defenseless for over _one_ _minute_, which in the Shinobi world is a lifetime if your job is to _kill_ the target, and more of an eternity if the target is a drunk old man on his knees begging for his life," said Shikamaru, as he was stumped the moment his Father told him everything up to that point, and asked what he thought of the situation the young Nara Heir stating it was checkmate.

"So when Sephiroth spared them all, including the bridge builder, you were stumped, and basically had a major brain freeze," said Choji knowing his friend well when it comes to difficult to solve problems.

"Exactly. My dad then went through each moment with the teams up to having their wounds healed, but still mostly down 90-95 percent their combined strength, and the events that happened afterwards. The only ones still able to protect the client was Team 8 and even then they wouldn't have been a match for Sephiroth much less Zabuza's forces. Hinata and Kiba were both taken down by that Haku girl, who was only known to them on a pure fluke when Hinata went into the forest, and gather herbs for healing. Even with the ANBU team the Hokage sent to back them up, there was still _no chance_ of Team 8 coming out of the mission on top, and being able to successfully protect the old bridge builder," said Shikamaru, as he ran through every scenario his genius mind could come up with to defeat them all, and came up with absolutely..._nothing_!

Had Sephiroth not decided to turn on Gato, they would be burying six of their friends, and two Jounin that were respected in their Shinobi fields.

"You sound more impressed by Sephiroth's tactics then anything Shikamaru," said Choji, as he surprisingly saw Shikamaru nod his head in admitting that, and run a hand through his hair.

"It is troublesome to admit Choji, but I do respect him in the ways of strategy, and I'm not the only one doing it either. That single mission is going to be studied for years to come by our clan, Jounin, and the ANBU themselves knowing that is a masterpiece of strategic moves only a seasoned veteran like the Sandaime Hokage or one if not all three Sannin together could have conceived...in their _prime_!" said Shikamaru, as he saw his teammates look at him shocked, and realized that things were getting out of control right now.

Their sensei was _suppose_ to be Sarutobi Asuma, but after the Sandaime died, the man had been grieving over the loss of his Father, and needed time to himself for now. So with that said, Team 10 was being trained by a sickly Jounin named Gekko Hayate, who was skilled with a sword, and a rare one to have in the Leaf a that.

Right now, the man was giving them a day off since he needed some bed rest due to his sickness being on one of its bad days, and was in no condition to teach them anything.

(With Team 7)

"Come you guys. I keep on telling you teamwork is the key," said Kakashi, as he saw his team was struggling to get out of the funk they were in, and blamed it on their inability to bond.

Unfortunately, Kakashi would _not_ admit to himself that the problem for this inability to bond was Sasuke, and to a lesser extent...Sakura.

The Uchiha was like a black hole wanting to suck everything towards him by force and follow his lead whether the action was right or wrong with the consequences be damned! Sakura was no better it seemed, as she followed through with whatever Sasuke wanted, and didn't care that the Uchiha was wrong. The only one that seemed competent in being a Shinobi was Sai, as he would use the strength behind his skills to makeup for the other two, and their easy to spot weaknesses.

It was a shame Sai's way of talking with people wasn't up to par with his Shinobi skills.

"I don't need these two. What I need is my own solo mission?" said Sasuke, as he was angry about being on a team with a weak girl, and a pale weirdo that had no people skills.

"And a penis," said Sai simply making both his teammates look at him angrily.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY TO SASUKE-KUN!" yelled Sakura not liking what she just heard.

"That he doesn't have a penis. What? Am I incorrect? I thought from the way he has been acting indicated he didn't have one and was unable to..._pleasure himself_," said Sai while looking at Kakashi currently shaking his head no.

"I...am going...to _kill you_!" said Sasuke looking at Sai black angry eyes and brought out a kunai to perform the intended act.

"Just because you don't have a penis to whack off with doesn't mean your any less a man much less a Shinobi Sasuke-kun," said Sai making Kakashi sweat drop while both Sasuke and Sakura were seething.

'Kami hates me,' thought Kakashi, as he was forced to stop the death of his pale student, and keep his team intact.

(Hokage Tower)

"So you've finally made a seal capable of stopping Sephiroth," said Tsunade staring at her former teammate seeing him look pretty smug knowing his skill was second only to his late student.

"Yes. It wasn't easy, but I did it, and I think it will work despite it being a prototype. It will temporarily poison his body long enough for either me or an ANBU team to subdue him before we bring him back to Konoha for trial," said Jiraiya knowing that was what the Fire Daimyo wanted and to further breathe fame into his country through a grand public trial with the infamous Namikaze Sephiroth being tried for war crimes.

"Had you and the Sandaime not lied to me, it wouldn't have come to this," said Tsunade, as she knew it was out of her hands, and into her old teammates on secret orders given by the Fire Daimyo himself.

"We did what we had to do Tsunade. The boy was going to be Sephiroth regardless of our actions," said Jiraiya knowing the prophecy had been at hand with the Kyuubi being thrown into the mix.

"You keep telling yourself that to make it easier to sleep at night," said Tsunade, as she saw bags under his eyes on occasion, and knew it wasn't from writing his _books_ or even working on some seal to take down Sephiroth.

"Believe it or not Tsunade-hime...it actually does help," said Jiraiya seriously though he still saw the skeptical look on Tsunade's face.

"You know what to do Jiraiya. Find Sephiroth, _persuade him_ first to come back with you to Konoha, and only use that seal as a last resort. I don't care what the Fire Daimyo told you, I want my Godson here in my office _alive_, and _healthy_ enough to speak to me with clear coherent words coming out of his mouth that aren't slurred from whatever effects that seal of yours causes," said Tsunade, as she knew Jiraiya was loyal to the Leaf, but not even Tsunade would do half the stuff he did, and in the name of "the greater good".

"No promises on the last part Tsunade," said Jiraiya before he left with Tsunade now narrowing her eyes at the spot where he had been just standing.

'Like you ever did keep your promises with me,' thought Tsunade, as she summoned Shizune to her office, and ordered her to bring in Ibiki for a private conversation.

(With Sephiroth)

The infamous swordsman looked down from his position in the sky, hidden from view of those below, and did not like what he saw. Barely 30 minutes into his conversation with the bandaged girl, a group of young teens were sneaking towards the house with graffiti spraying can, and were about to vandalized the walls of the shack.

They would have to, if not for a little intervention from Sephiroth, and Haku upon her return from the town with information to determine _why_ the people were hostile. So after knocking the teens out, dropping them quickly off in town, and hanging them from a pole only in their underwear did the two individuals turn their attention to the task at hand.

The girl's name was Isaribi and she was accused of being a horrible sea monster that had become the cause of ships crashing and the loss of loved ones of the town whose family members were sailors. They called her the Kaima, though they preferred to call the girl the more simpler names, and weren't afraid to attack when the opportunity to do so came to them.

What bothered Sephiroth though was the fact this girl couldn't possibly be such a horrible monster like the people thought she was, as Isaribi didn't have the natural look a horrible monster has in their eyes, and it was not something that could be hidden from him either. If this girl was indeed a monster of the sea like the people claimed, then she was against her will, and that someone was commanding Isaribi to do such horrible things.

Meaning she was a puppet and where there is a puppet there is usually a puppeteer not far off puling the strings.

'And where there are puppet strings...there is a trail leading to the puppeteer,' thought Sephiroth, as he saw Isaribi leave her shack, and before looking around to see if she saw anyone.

Sephiroth watched, as the girl's body began to change into some form of fish like based transformation, and dive into the water before heading off to her destination. Descending to the ground, he waited a moment before Haku appeared, and reported her findings to him about when the last ship had sunk less then a week ago with another not scheduled to come around remotely near the area until next.

"So either Isaribi is going for a swim or...," said Sephiroth turning to Haku smirking at her.

"She's going to meet her Master," said Haku knowing that they had what they needed.

"Time to get changed Haku. We're going hunting," said Sephiroth, as his eyes flashed for a second with wave of power, and Haku shivered internally at the sight of it.

"Yes Sephiroth-sama," said Haku, as she quickly hid from his line of sight, and quickly changed into her Shinobi attire.

It was time to hunt the _real_ monster behind Isaribi.

(With Jiraiya-2 Days Later)

"And you're sure about this?" said Jiraiya talking to the person, who was part of his spy network, and leaning behind the tree he was leaning on while henged into a civilian bum.

"Yeah. Two people in Sea Country arrived there not that long ago. Rumor has it, one of them have been asking about the resident sea monster there said to be targeting ships, and the killing of sailors the beast has caused. One boy. One girl though the girl is said to be slightly older and very beautiful. Don't know the relationship between them though," said the spy while Jiraiya nodded his head in understanding.

"Have they showed any signs of leaving anytime soon?" said Jiraiya knowing how far he'd have to travel and that they might be gone by the time he arrived.

"Not from what I've gathered. They're staying in a small hotel in town. It only has one bedroom," said the spy making Jiraiya's eyes widen.

"So the relationship could be more then platonic," said Jiraiya out loud.

"Possibly, but then again the hotel they're staying at is small, and only has openings with one bedroom. Chances are, it's platonic, and one of them is sleeping in a chair," said the spy, but knew how Jiraiya thought, and was having some minor perverted thoughts in his head.

"Okay. I'll head there right away," said Jiraiya secretly paying his spy for the info before heading out.

Now Jiraiya just had to pray the two were still there and his one of a kind seal could take down or possibly weakened the One-Winged Angel of Death.

(Rice Country-Sound village)

"And these reports are correct?" said Orochimaru of the Sannin and traitor of the Leaf reading the information given to him by his spy placed deeply into the inner workings of Konoha.

"From what Kabuto mentioned, they are correct, and that he apologizes for taking so long to tell you about the Sandaime's death. Konoha was on a heavy lockdown until Tsunade became the new Hokage and even then she was having Konoha's security stepped up to much higher levels," said the Sound Shinobi before the Sannin's throne.

"I understand. Tsunade always thought the Sandaime was too soft in his old age when it came to security. It's only natural this would happen though I am surprised she even took up the mantle after the expressed feelings I knew were held within her," said Orochimaru tapping his chin in thought.

"Senju Tsunade wasn't the first choice from my understanding. Jiraiya of the Sannin was chosen before her, but he turned it down, and is out hunting down the Sandaime's killer," said the Sound Shinobi seeing Orochimaru's eyes widen at that information.

"So the prophecy of Namikaze Sephiroth returning to this world was true. Such a person would prove to be _the_ ultimate vessel if I could acquire him. Put a team together to find out where he is and offer him an invitation to have a private audience with me," said Orochimaru with the Sound Shinobi bowing his head and then leaving to complete his mission.

All the while Orochimaru grinned at the thought of obtaining the ultimate being rumors made the swordsman out to be and using his new body to crush Akatsuki _after_ testing it on Konoha.

He would soon have his revenge two fold!

(Konoha Hospital-3 Days Later)

Hinata knew she was going to have a hard time learning from Senju Tsunade, but to say she was a real slave drive was an understatement, and was like saying Sephiroth was the most skilled swordsman in history. Tsunade taught Hinata the basics, which the Hyuuga girl herself got down quick enough, and then the more advanced stuff kicked into the mix. Not only that, but Tsunade had also told Hinata that she would be learning how to learn how to use the infamous super strength that made the Slug Princess so famous in battle, and mix it into the Gentle Fist style to cause even more damage.

Hinata blushed at the comment Tsunade made about using it to help keep her future and possibly perverted husband in line by threatening to break his balls should the guy get out of line.

"Very good Hinata. You're progressing well with learning chakra scalpels. Remember, this medical Jutsu can be used to help, or hurt someone if used for that manner. You need incredible chakra control for either one Hinata so be careful when using this and practice chakra control daily to help with your training. You're good so far due to your training at such a young age required when it comes to mastering the Byakugan, but I won't let you slack off, and after this were going to focus more on learning how to destroy a tree.

"Thank you Tsunade-sama," said Hinata without stuttering, as she bowed her head since it had been one of the conditions of her training by the Hokage to stop stuttering, and had stomped that out within the second day of training.

"I'm really surprised your clan tried to stop me from teaching you, even after I explained your potential in the field, and that it would further create respect for the Hyuuga Clan in general," said Tsunade, as she saw Hinata looked depressed at that, and felt sorry for the poor girl.

"There is talk of putting the Cage Bird Seal on me by the Clan Elders," said Hinata, as she looked at her teacher with worry, and saw the angry look on Tsunade's face.

"Well I know for a fact they can't. One of the laws of the village charter states that should the Hokage take an apprentice in any field they are a Master in _cannot_ be stopped by the apprentice's family _or_ the clan they are from. You are a Shinobi Hinata. An adult in the eyes of the village laws meaning _you_ fall under _my_ care and there is not a single thing those bakas can do about it. They so much as even prepare the ink used for the Cage Bird Seal, it will create problem so great that it may result in getting the damn thing banned from the Hyuuga Clan, and it would be there own fault. I wouldn't worry about such talk Hinata since its most likely spoken to bring fear to you and bring the idea it will cause problems for me," said Tsunade, as she saw Hinata nod, and saw Shizune enter the room with a concerned look on her face.

"Tsunade-sama, we have a problem," said Shizune that made the Hokage's face sport a frown.

"What's the problem Shizune?" said Tsunade, as she left the room to talk to Shizune, and the younger woman handed her a piece of parchment found in the Sandaime's files.

"The Uchiha Massacre is not what everyone thinks it was," said Shizune, as she saw the Hokage's face light up with fury, and saw the list of signatures on the order given to Itachi to kill the Uchiha Clan on ground of rebelling against Konoha.

One of them was the Sandaime along with Danzo and the two Shinobi Council members that were the late Sandaime's advisors that became _her _advisors.

"Anything else?" said Tsunade seeing Shizune nod and then hand her a journal written by the Third Hokage himself.

"I found this sealed away in the Sandaime's vault in your office. And when I mean sealed, I mean _sealed_ with complex seals, and meant to hurt anyone with authorization access just below mine," said Shizune knowing only _one_ person with such skills in the sealing arts and he was out of the village.

"I see. Leave this with me. Its high time I learned what dirty little secrets my old sensei has and see to it that they are handled in proper fashion," said Tsunade, as she knew her late sensei would have some dirty secrets in here aside from what he did to her Godson, and needed to know just _how_ many of them there were.

(Land of Sea)

"This is the cave she went in," said Haku, as she could detect multiple beings within the area, and not all of them were completely human.

"Come Haku. Let's see what Isaribi's Master is like," said Sephiroth, as the two had been watching the girl's actions the entire time, and determined that Isaribi herself was not the evil monster the people of this land made her out to be.

Her Master was the real monster. A man scientist by the name of Amachi and kidnapped several citizens before performing mad experiments on them. In Sephiroth's mind, the man reminded him of another mad scientist named Hojo, and the mere remembrance of the man that had kept Jenova imprisoned the way she was had caused Sephiroth's blood to boil within his body.

Amachi was a shadowy shell of a carbon copy of Hojo and it was time the man just what he deserved, which in Sephiroth's mind was a long overdue one way trip to a place that was argued to exist by many in the ways of science, and that place was..._Hell_!

"You stupid bitch! I created you and what I can create I can _destroy_!" said a man, who was clearly Amachi, and he didn't look pleased with Isaribi.

Probably because Isaribi didn't sink the newest ship that had the courage to sail near the Land of Sea and had come back demanding the cure from him now before threatening to tell the people the truth about _why_ she had done those horrible things in the past.

"I don't care anymore! I'd rather be destroyed then serve scum like you. I bet you don't even have a cure for my condition," said Isaribi accused and to her slight surprise the man was laughing hysterically.

"A cure? Why would I want to cure the likes of _you_? You're just a freak! A monster that _I_ created in the name of science to further the ways of the Shinobi and for a brief time you were a nice leap forward in my plans. Unfortunately, Orochimaru-sama lost interest in what I was doing, and ended my funding for these projects. Now you are just a pawn to play and I am the player using you in my scheme to perfect my research so that my other more _successful_ experiments cane take revenge on the Sannin!" said Amachi, as he saw Isaribi look at him in shock, and anger at his words.

"Bastard! When the people in town hear what you've done they will...," said Isaribi, but was quickly silenced by a backhanded slap to her face, and looked at the smiling doctor with surprise.

"_You_ are going to tell _them_? The people that hate, shun, and attack you whenever they see you? The one whose sunk ships, killed sailors, and brought misery to their lives in the process? Who would believe you? No one! Face it my dear, you are stuck with me because I'm the only one willing to tolerate your existence, and give you a purpose," said Amachi seeing the girl look ready to cry with angry eyes.

"Don't be so sure," said Sephiroth, as he stepped out of the shadows of the cave, and Haku stayed in them.

"Who are you? How did you find this lab?" said Amachi frowning at Sephiroth.

"I found this place by following her. She had a certain traveling pattern and was always cautious when seeking you out for orders. As to who I am? I...am your destroyer," said Sephiroth, as he brought out Masamune, and began walking towards Amachi.

"I don't know who or what you are, but one thing you are certainly _not_, is my destroyer, and my pets are going to shred your body to pieces," said Amachi, as he hit a switch, and an alarm went out with the sound of angry hungry animals howling in a nearby room.

"Oh no," said Isaribi, as she had seen the room, and knew what was in there.

"Oh yes! My chimeras were going to be used to destroy Orochimaru and that bitch of student Anko after the Sannin abandoned this place for greener pastures," said Amachi, as he took off running down another passageway, and laughing in the process.

"Fool. Haku pursue him while I deal with the chimeras. Don't let down your guard for a moment. I sense something is..._off_ with our mad scientist," said Sephiroth, as he walked towards the sounds of animals coming his way, and Haku followed the path Amachi had gone.

"Wait! What about me?" said Isaribi seeing the boy possibly a few years younger then her walking towards what she thought would be his doom.

"After today Isaribi-san, you are free to do whatever it is you want in life. _Go_ anywhere that you want. My advice to you though is to seek someone out that can help cure your current condition since its clear that its not natural," said Sephiroth before turning to see the army of chimera coming at him with the intent to rip his body to pieces.

Not even seeing the girl nod her head before leaving, the One-Winged Angel of Death moved swiftly to remove these monstrosities from his presence, and seek out his female comrade hunting down the not so good scientist.

(With Jiraiya)

"You're sure? You saw them walking around?" said Jiraiya holding a picture of Haku given to him in sketch artist rendering Hinata gave of her and one of Sephiroth to a man in the small hotel.

"Yeah. The girl was something. If I was just 30 years younger. Not that I could get close enough if I tried. Not with the younger boy beside her though he looked more man then boy. Given those eyes of his," said the man at the desk seeing the pictures.

"What do you mean?" said Jiraiya curiously.

"I've seen a lot of people traveling through here during my time in this land. I've seen all kinds of eyes from young to old of all different colors. But _these_ eyes...they scare me to no end. They're the eyes of a killer. Someone whose seen death, like he could bring it down upon people like he was an agent of the Shinigami himself, and not feel regret from such brutality. It was in his walk too. He barely ever spoke when I saw him, but when the kid did, it was only to the girl in this sketch, and she seemed to enjoy hearing his voice," said the man seeing Jiraiya nod in understanding.

"What room are they in?" said Jiraiya knowing he could set an ambush for the two when they got back.

"They checked out. Paid the amount owed and left. I think they're leaving later today," said the man not knowing why Jiraiya was frowning in anger since the two had done nothing wrong as far as he could tell.

Hell, they gave a nice tip for good service, and acted like ideal customers.

"Thank you," said Jiraiya, as he cursed himself for getting here too late, and only took comfort in the notion that he was close tracking the boy down.

An explosion rocked the area around him and forced Jiraiya to run outside to see another explosion of water near the town occur before a figure went flying towards it. Jiraiya had to jump out of the way of being hit by the body thrown in his direction and looked to see it was the bloody dying form of a man like fish. Wait! Man like fish? What the Hell?

That was what the people around him seeing the man thought too, as they thought the girl was the monster of the sea, and yet this was not same person they had tried to hurt a week ago. In fact, their usual attempts at scaring the bandaged girl right out of their small semi-poor country had been thwarted ever since last week started, and it all coincided with the silver haired boy with that beautiful girl he was with.

The same silver haired boy with the one angelic wing that was a shade of pure white, but as he descended from the sky could see it turning a darker shade until it was grey, and he was _not_ happy if the look on his face was any indication. The moment he touched down on the ground, a masked figure was beside him, and was unreadable to the people. Even Jiraiya, who knew it was the girl named Haku had no way of knowing what was going on inside the female ice user's head, or see what her face was like behind the mask.

"People of Sea Country, I give you your so called Kaima, and his name is Amachi. He has been the one causing you pain, suffering, and death to your land in the name of his experiments with one of them he tested on himself. The girl Isaribi you have tormented for being this monster was actually his past experiment, who he promised to cure her in return for sinking ships, and killing sailors while some were captured to be experimented on. It was a promise he never intended to keep. In fact, Amachi would have killed her, dissected her body, and then continued with his experimentations on helpless people with you all being none the wiser," said Sephiroth, as he saw the people look at him in shock, and then at the fish man on the ground slowly dying before them.

"Where is Isaribi?" said someone feeling guilty for hating the girl for this.

"She's free from his control. She's safe to go wherever her heart desires," said Sephiroth cryptically not wanting the people to seek her out.

"What about his experiments?" said Jiraiya deciding to make his presence felt and saw Sephiroth look at him for a moment.

"They were mindless beasts with different parts of animals put together called chimera for the purpose of being a mindless army. They are all dead," said Sephiroth, who didn't give away any emotions when seeing Jiraiya, and simply focused on the crowd at hand.

"Will the girl come back here to exact revenge?" said another person worriedly.

"Of what she wants, I cannot answer you, _but_ I do know that all Isaribi wants is to live a normal life, and I advised her before she left to seek out someone with the ability to help," said Sephiroth seeing the people let out a sigh of relief.

"If you see her again, could you tell Isaribi were sorry, and that we'd like to make it up to her if she came back?" said a woman with guilt on her face.

"I will tell her, but should she come back here, I expect you all to apologize yourselves _regardless_ if I've done it for you, or not since this was _your_ crime," said Sephiroth, as he turned away from the group, and Haku following while being slightly behind him while they walked knowing who was there during that little moment of answering questions.

Haku was never going to give Jiraiya of the Sannin the opening he needed and had every intention of being her Master's shield should the man try something.

"Sephiroth!" said Jiraiya, as he appeared in front of the swordsman, and Haku after they were a safe distance from the town.

"Jiraiya of the Sannin. To what do I owe this _not_ so great _honor_ of being in your slimy presence?" said Sephiroth with sarcasm in his voice.

"I'm under orders by the Fifth Hokage Senju Tsunade to bring you back to the Leaf and if necessary subdue you for trial on criminal charges against humanity," said Jiraiya, as he saw Haku immediately bring out senbon needles, and prepared for battle before Sephiroth raised his hand slightly to tell his bodyguard to stay her hand.

"So my Godmother is the new Hokage. Does she know _why_ I killed the Sandaime? Does she know _why_ I am this way? That three people in my life set things in motion to force me into submission?" said Sephiroth seeing Jiraiya scowl at him.

"She knows why. Kind of hard _not_ to after the Academy teacher told everyone on your orders," said Jiraiya, as he saw Sephiroth smirk at him, and let out a chuckle that told the Sannin the boy was clearly amused.

"My Godmother had a right to know. Better to hear the truth then listen to someone who prefers to lie about what things that should not be lied about," said Sephiroth knowing that Jiraiya knew what he was referring to.

"How do you know Tsunade is your Godmother?" said Jiraiya curiously.

"A part of my Mother was sealed inside of me with the Kyuubi. After I became what you see now, some of her memories still remained within me, and one of them was when she asked Tsunade to be my Godmother. My Mother had also asked _you_...to be my _Godfather _too," said Sephiroth seeing the man stiffen at that.

"I lied to her because it was for the greater good. Tsunade had always wanted a child just like Kushina and you were the closest thing to it after Kushina died. Had she known of your existence, you would have been taken away from the Leaf to grow to become what you are now, and the prophecy would have occurred sooner then later," said Jiraiya with Sephiroth scoffing at him.

"The prophecy was going to happen with or without the body of Uzumaki Naruto. All you did was set things in motion for this body to become my way back to this world. If you truly feared the prophecy like you claim, then you wouldn't have trained my Father, and stopped him from becoming what he was before the Kyuubi attacked," said Sephiroth seeing Jiraiya seething at his words.

"Minato wasn't the child of prophecy," said Jiraiya getting angry at the silver haired boy.

"But you suspected any child he had _could_ be the prophesized one regardless. Why not kill him to prevent it all together? What is it about my Father that made you not have the heart to destroy or cripple him like you did me?" said Sephiroth seeing Jiraiya's facial muscles twitch slightly with sweat running down his forehead.

"He was your son," said Haku simply while Jiraiya's eyes narrowed slightly with jaw slightly clenching.

"Ah, I see. The final piece is finally put together. What was he to you then? Illegitimate? Did you even know? No doubt the woman you were with for one night was Namikaze, but you never married due to wanting my Godmother like everyone claims you did, and simply forgot about him until it became time for you to become a Jounin sensei. By then, he had grown strong, and you no doubt discovered my Father was your son somehow. You didn't have the heart to kill him after discovering the prophecy of the Namikaze Clan since he was your own flesh and blood. So you decided to keep an eye on him instead just in case, but then saw he wasn't the chosen child of prophecy, and left it alone until my Mother told him that she was pregnant," said Sephiroth seeing his Godfather _and_ at the same time his _Grandfather_ look at him with anger.

"Shut up. A monster like you would never understand what it means to be in love," said Jiraiya in a dangerous voice.

"Are you so sure? You forget I have my memories from my time in this world that I lived in centuries ago. I knew what it was like to love another. My Mother then was not mine truly by blood, but I had hers in me all the same, and I became worthy of being called the son of Jenova after hearing her cries of pain. I saw her in agony. She commanded me to smite those that were responsible for the crimes against her person and like any good son that loves their Mother...I obeyed. It's _you_ Jiraiya of the Sannin, who doesn't understand, and know what it means to love another with all your soul," said Sephiroth seeing Jiraiya scowl deepen.

"Are you saying if I truly loved my family, then this wouldn't have happened, and the prophecy wouldn't have been fulfilled?" said Jiraiya not understanding Sephiroth's words.

"As I told you before, the prophecy was going to happen whether it was using the body of Uzumaki Naruto, or not due to your stupidity. It was your lust for the flesh that sired my Father. Not love for the person or the soul behind it. Had you truly known love Jiraiya of the Sannin, then Tsunade would have raised me, and the Leaf would have had a powerful ally to call their own...instead of the _monster_ they created out of their own arrogance," said Sephiroth seeing Jiraiya shake his head in disbelief.

"I don't believe that," said Jiraiya simply.

"No you wouldn't believe me, would you. After all, I am just a _monster_, and a monster shouldn't know _how_ to love another. Isn't that what you believe?" said Sephiroth seeing the Sannin's hands become fists and the Sannin not speaking a word.

The silence Jiraiya gave spoke volumes to Sephiroth though.

"Sephiroth-sama, we should leave," said Haku, as she didn't want to be in the Sannin's presence anymore, and knew that her Master didn't want to be near him either.

"Agreed. This is my one warning to you Jiraiya, do _not_ come after me _again_, or I will crush you regardless of our blood ties," said Sephiroth before taking to the air with his arm around Haku's waist and they ascended into the sky.

"Spare me your warnings! You're no family of mine monster! The next time we meet, I will stop you, and avenge my sensei!" said Jiraiya angrily.

"We'll see," said Sephiroth were his only ominous words to Jiraiya before flying off with Haku away from the Land of Sea.

"You could have killed him if you desired Sephiroth-sama," said Haku wondering why he didn't.

"It's too early to be killing the likes of him. The setting isn't right. But it will be...very soon," said Sephiroth, as he knew from what they overheard from Amachi's conversation with Isaribi earlier was that there next destination would be less welcome, and filled with more danger.

He was going to a snake's lair and the snake's name was...Orochimaru.

(A/N: YAY! I updated. Hope you liked this chapter since it was mostly a filler episode that will lead to other things. Until next time...PEACE!))


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5-Politics

Naruto walked through Rice Country with Haku by his side, as he headed for the one place that made sense for someone like Orochimaru to hide, and yet stay close to the Leaf should the opportunity to strike against it would become available. Out of all the different countries surrounding the Land of Fire, only Rice Country was without a Shinobi village, and was recently neutral until the announcement of a small one being formed.

Sephiroth smirked, as he remembered what Iruka mentioned the history of the Shinobi villages, how the Feudal Lords funding them had setup international rules in terms of the founding of a Shinobi village, and how foreign Shinobi entering another village for the Chuunin Exams were given temporary immunity. Whether it was the Jounin senseis sponsoring their Genin team or the Genin teams performing for their respected Shinobi village, it was known that unless fights were in an official setting approved by all parties involved, there would be no attacks on either side, and to violate them would bring about the full wrath of the provoked country itself.

It was one of the reasons why the people in Konoha felt safe when the Chuunin Exams were held in the Leaf knowing that the Fire Daimyo and his armies would help them. It was also why all the minor villages were hesitant to send their sometime overeager Genin teams to places like Konoha. Having one of the strongest Shinobi villages coming after you was one thing, but the military might of the Fire Daimyo's samurai was something else entirely, and no one wanted to face off against _that_!

"You really think we can get an audience with Orochimaru of the Sannin here in Rice Country?" said Haku, as she had first heard of the rumors of where the man was hiding mere days before she first met Sephiroth, but she felt the rumors had a sliver of truth in them, and should be checked out just in case they were accurate.

"I know we will Haku. Whether Orochimaru is here in this place or not doesn't matter since he will want to find me too. Still, be on your guard at all times, and keep your eyes open for any attacks aimed at us. Given your bloodline limit Haku, you are a much of a target as I am when it comes to the Sannin if the rumors for why he left the Leaf are true, and he will no doubt seek to claim your power for his own devices," said Sephiroth now sensing killer intent rising within Haku knowing that she would rather die then be the snake Sannin's plaything.

"If he looks at me wrong I'll destroy him," said Haku with conviction and Sephiroth had no doubt she would.

Stopping suddenly, the two saw themselves quickly surrounded my Sound Shinobi on all sides, and had weapons drawn for battle. After what appeared to be a long standoff with them, Sephiroth turned his head slightly to see a grayish white haired boy with glasses walk into the clearing with a smile on his face, and bowed his head at them.

"Welcome to Rice Country and the territory that is Sound village. My name is Kabuto. I have been ordered to take you to Orochimaru-sama. He is most interested in meeting you both," said Kabuto, as he motioned for the Shinobi around him to stand down, and then motioned for his two guests to follow him.

"Should we be forced to fight, hold nothing back, show no mercy, and crush all that stand against you," said Sephiroth in a whisper with Haku nodding silently.

(Orochimaru's Lair)

"So you're the one that killed the Sandaime Hokage. I must say a mere child killing a Kage is most impressive," said Orochimaru looking down at the swordsman from his dramatic throne in the room with his forces filling the room and his bodyguards were beside his throne.

"Hardly. Considering my heritage, did you really expect anything less from a Namikaze, or the reincarnation of its founder?" said Sephiroth, as he saw the Sannin smile at him, and it sickened the One-Winged Angel.

"No. I suppose not. You met my expectations quite well. Unlike my old sensei, I don't like to mess with prophecies, and attempt to stop them," said Orochimaru before looking at Haku with calculating eyes.

"Yes. Your former teammate Jiraiya made the same mistake your sensei did too, but I have yet had the time to slay him, and spill his blood over all of Fire Country. I actually came here to offer a small..._proposal_. If you're interested that is?" said Sephiroth seeing Orochimaru's eyes turn back to him like he planned so they wouldn't wander to Haku.

"Really? And what do you have to offer me that I could want?" said Orochimaru with narrowed eyes.

"My help in the Leaf's destruction. Isn't that why you are amassing forces in a country that neighbors the Land of Fire right under the Leaf's very nose?" said Sephiroth seeing Orochimaru's eyes widen in surprise and then narrowed dangerously.

"I could order my men to kill you right now for releasing that information so casually to my face," said Orochimaru seeing his force slowly drawing weapons to fight his guests.

"Then you would be ordering them to their death and your plans to crush Konoha would die with them..._along with you_. Amachi learned the hard way that opposing me is not in the best interest of one's health," said Sephiroth coldly, as he let his power consume the room, and made everyone around him freeze under its influence.

'Such incredible power I must have it! But not now. Not until he has his guard down. And what did he mean by Amachi? I haven't seen him in a short while with all of his aquatic experiments,' thought Orochimaru, as he raised a hand to tell Sephiroth to stop, and found that it took considerable effort on his part to make the motion.

"I can either be your enemy or I can be your ally. Choose wisely," said Sephiroth, as he saw Orochimaru calculating the odds in his head at having him as an enemy, and then as an ally.

It didn't take a genius to know what the Sannin chose.

"I choose to have you as an ally Namikaze Sephiroth and welcome you to my village," said Orochimaru with his forces putting away their weapons and leaving the room.

"You chose..._wisely_," said Sephiroth, as he left with Haku right beside him, and decided to find them a place to stay for a short time.

"Is this wise Orochimaru-sama? Word will surely spread of his presence here in Sound and so many will seek to hunt him down," said Kabuto, as he saw Orochimaru smile at him, and saw the Sannin was planning something.

"Don't worry Kabuto. This base is only temporary. We have hundreds of them scattered throughout the different lands of the Elemental Countries. Besides, this alliance will only last until the end of Konoha's destruction, and by then I will have everything I desire in the end," said Orochimaru smiling deviously at how everything he wanted would be his after the Leaf fell.

Including a new vessel to call his own.

(Konoha-Hokage's Office)

"I told you to _persuade_ my Godson to come home _peacefully_ so we could talk to him in a reconciling manner Jiraiya. What part of that order don't you understand?" said Tsunade, as she was pissed at Jiraiya's actions, and it was clear the Sannin in front of her didn't care.

"Those were _your_ orders Tsunade. The Fire Daimyo's are higher up and he told me to do what needed to be done to take down Sephiroth. No talks. No persuasion. Just take him down and take him alive _if possible_ for trial. That's it!" said Jiraiya seeing Tsunade was not pleased with his answer and looked ready to sock him one right in the face.

"The man only wants to posture and puff out his chest. The trial would be for show only and we both know it," said Tsunade, as she didn't want that, but saw Jiraiya didn't care, and knew that the Fire Daimyo didn't either with what she wanted for her Godson.

_Their _Godson when she thought about it, but Tsunade doubted Jiraiya actually wanted the position, and didn't want any part of the responsibilities the title brought.

"That's for when Sephiroth is taken down. That's politics. Shinobi don't handle that part of the world Tsunade. You know that. I know that. Even sensei knew that even though he was an expert in it," said Jiraiya seeing Tsunade narrow her eyes at him.

"That's what sicken me the most about him right now. The older sensei got, the less of a Shinobi, and more of a politician he became. Politicians can't lead Shinobi Jiraiya. Trying to blend the two is a dangerous combination. It was why my Grandfather had made laws to keep certain bodies of government from within the Leaf from taking too much power and our sensei chose to weaken during his old age because he couldn't handle the weight though tried in order to recapture some form of glory," said Tsunade seeing Jiraiya not meeting her eyes and she knew that he knew she was right.

Though his pride wouldn't let him admit it.

"Why are you bringing this up about our sensei now Tsunade? This isn't like you," said Jiraiya before Tsunade revealed leather paper filled book that the Sannin recognized was their sensei's journal.

"_This_ is why I'm bringing it up. Sensei wanted to make sure everything he ever did in this world was recorded as a _just in case_ contingency should something happened to him and didn't want certain people to think they could get away with things in their life. I found some very interesting chapters going back quite a ways, _including_ what really happened the night of the Uchiha Massacre, _and_ how a certain Sannin talked him into using Itachi later to be his spy for a certain organization hunting down the nine tailed beasts. Care to explain why the true reason behind the loss of the Uchiha Clan wasn't brought to light, and give me one good reason why I shouldn't expose it now?" said Tsunade seeing Jiraiya scoffing at her like she was an idiot.

"Damn it Tsunade. You know full well the problems that would arise from such a thing. The Uchiha Clan betraying Konoha would have made the Leaf look so weak! How would Konoha's enemies react when they learn we can't trust one our own clans? They'd swarm on us like sharks smelling blood in the water! The only reason they didn't was because the Fire Daimyo pledge to support us temporarily until the village stabilized from the loss of the clan," said Jiraiya seeing Tsunade scowl at him.

"I highly doubt the Fire Daimyo would do any less for us if he knew they helped betray us more then once to our enemies. They've sabotaged missions, leaked information to our enemies about our informants in _their _territory, _and_ they helped destroy the treaty with Kumo nearly a decade ago. The only reason Kumo didn't demand more then the body of Hyuuga Hiashi or go to war was because sensei told them about the prophecy and that he would make it happen if they didn't back off," said Tsunade seeing Jiraiya letting out a sigh.

"What do you want me to say Tsunade? We had to choose the lesser of two evils on both counts. The village needs to survive no matter what and if that means sweeping up certain sins under the rug then so be it," said Jiraiya being an expert in the cloak and dagger ways of being a Shinobi then Tsunade was.

"So damn the consequences if innocent people get hurt in the process. Is that it?" said Tsunade seeing Jiraiya shrug.

"That's the way of politics in the Elemental Countries Tsunade. We have to do the dirty work and the people above us spin it in a way that suits everyone's best interests," said Jiraiya knowing that was how things were done and that it was Tsunade's fault for being out of the game long enough to embrace such naïve line of thinking.

"Get out! Get out before I smash my fist through your skull and damn the consequences of _my_ actions," said Tsunade, as she would have too had Jiraiya not seen the look on her face, and left before acting on the impulse.

(Fire Daimyo's Palace-Several Weeks Later)

"So the Hokage isn't happy with my orders to you," said the Fire Daimyo walking with Jiraiya through the palace hallway.

"Sadly no. Tsunade has always wanted to have a child, but the loss of her lover Dan kind of ended that possible life in being a Mother, and only her Godson remains in terms of having any parental ties to this world," said Jiraiya, as he saw the Fire Daimyo shake his head in disappointment, and it was clear he disproved of Tsunade's way of thinking.

"I may have to consider removing her from the position as Hokage if this continues," said the Fire Daimyo, as she knew it was only done in extreme cases when a Feudal Lord has a different view of a Kage, and the Kage won't bend to the Feudal Lord's wishes when the situation warrants it.

"Don't give up on her yet. She just needs to see Sephiroth in action and when Tsunade does her whole perception of him will change," said Jiraiya, as he knew that while his former teammate had a difference of opinion of things, she was still a good Hokage, and the Leaf needed her in charge.

"I hope you're right Jiraiya. Keep trying to track that monster down. I want him brought to me alive, but if you have to kill him, then do it, and bring back his head so I can have it as a trophy to further instill fear in my enemies. If you can't...," said the Fire Daimyo with his warning to the Sannin clear as day in his voice.

(Sound Village-At the Moment)

"You want me to lead this weak Genin team into Konoha for the Chuunin Exams?" said Sephiroth with Haku beside him looking at the trio seeing them glare at his person for the insult.

"Yes. I was originally going to do it in your place, but with Sarutobi-sensei dead, it will be more difficult to escape Tsunade's much more keen eyes, and she knows what I look like easily if enough of my features are showing. I have another means to get into the Leaf undetected, but you being there would certainly help secure my entry into the village with all eyes on you, and your new Genin team," said Orochimaru, as he knew that with everyone focusing on Sephiroth being in the Leaf for the Chuunin Exams, it would help mask his plans for the invasion, and keep Tsunade's eyes off of him.

"So I take the heat while you enter Konoha without getting burned," said Sephiroth, as he sensed Orochimaru would do something like this, and didn't really have a problem with the plan.

If anything, the One-Winged Angel preferred it, and would have even suggested such a move.

"It's the only true way I can let my dream of destroying the Leaf become a reality," said Orochimaru, as he studied Sephiroth's reaction to his plan, and found the unreadable face of the swordsman to be even more difficult to read then Itachi was when in the Akatsuki organization.

"I know it is Orochimaru-san, but you must understand that, given your nature to betray people, I have to be sure you don't sell me out, and for your own personal gains. Such actions aimed at my person can have some..._serious_ _consequences_," said Sephiroth before leaving the room, but not before turning to the Sound team, and blasting them with killer intent to make them understand just how beyond their level he really was.

Their faces were paler then Orochimaru before he left the room.

"I do not trust him," said Haku when they reached their small home, as she saw Sephiroth smirk, and wondered what was going on inside his head.

"I know you don't. I don't either. How is Kimimaro doing?" said Sephiroth, as he found out about her brief run-in with the albino Kaguya when first traveling with Zabuza, and how the two were very much alike when it came to pain.

"Not well. He's coughing up blood more and more. I think it's a rare disease from his clan created due to the environment of Water Country. It's a shame Kimimaro has it. He's was considered the strongest of his clan before they were destroyed. From what I learned of his past, they even sealed him up in fear of his power, and would only let him on certain occasions to engage in heavy battles," said Haku, as she saw him scowl, and knew it was because Kimimaro was a lot like him too.

Being treated like some animal. Told when to heel, to beg, and to fight when the Master commands you to only for that Master to lock you away in a cage until it was time to be used again.

"He needs a medic beyond the one here if Kabuto himself can't heal what's slowly killing him. He needs Senju Tsunade," said Sephiroth, as he saw Haku look at him with a frown despite the mask she wore, and sensed her confusion.

"Couldn't you heal him Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku knowing he had the power to save lives along with taking them.

"I could, but there is always the risk of Kimimaro still being loyal to Orochimaru after using my powers to heal him, and our albino friend still needs to shift his loyalties away from the snake before that happens," said Sephiroth knowing how devoted the Kaguya was to Orochimaru.

"I understand...at least I think I do," said Haku, as she wanted to learn from Sephiroth, and was finding it difficult to see what he did despite her training.

"Don't worry yourself Haku. In time, you will be able to keep up with me, and may even foresee my plans before they're even finalized. Like Hyuuga Hinata, I see lot of potential in you, and will try to bring it out," said Sephiroth, as he had been spending time with the girl in terms of Taijutsu due to Haku's reliance on her speed, and bloodline limit to help win battles.

However, her Taijutsu was average at best, and knew that there were people out in the world capable of removing Haku's strength with their own abilities.

"When do we leave for Konoha?" said Haku while trying to keep her blush down despite the mask covering it.

"One week from now. In the off chance we are pinned down in some kind of ambush, I want you to flee, and find Zabuza," said Sephiroth seeing the girl freezing in place before rushing in front of him and pulling her mask off.

"No! I won't! I'll die defending you!" said Haku, as she wanted Sephiroth to see just how much his influence effected her, and how deep her loyalties lied with him.

"No, you won't Haku. I will not let them capture you, put you on trial, and then sentence you into a life of Hell where they will no doubt force you to breed them a child to turn into their toy. In the event of my capture or death, I want you to find Zabuza, and stay with him where it will be safe," said Sephiroth seeing Haku shake her head once again in protest.

"Please don't ask me of that Sephiroth-sama. How can I ever be a tool worthy of your greatness if you cast me aside knowing my skills could change the outcome?" said Haku, as she hugged him now, crying into his shirt, and listened to his heart beating.

"One of the rare problems in being a master tactician is sometimes you foresee your own destruction regardless of victory gained in the end," said Sephiroth before slowly putting a hand on her head and gently petting it though for what reason he did was boggling his mind.

"Then I want to fall in battle with you. To achieve my purpose," said Haku, as she held on even tighter, and heard him chuckle.

"My dear girl, your purpose in life is not to die, but rather to _live_, and witness all that you can so the story of your experiences with me lives on until my end," said Sephiroth while Haku shook her head in his chest with denial and continued to sob.

"I will not let your story end so quickly Sephiroth-sama," said Haku hearing the sound of his heartbeat again while trying to burn the sound of it into her mind so it wouldn't be forgotten.

"Nor will I let it end Haku. Come now, it's time to get some sleep. Are you sure you don't want your own bed?" said Sephiroth seeing Haku blush knowing her answer, but still had to ask, and knew why she didn't want one.

Aside from the occasional night terrors that would spring up in her sleep from time to time.

"No. The bed I have now is fine," said Haku meekly, as she cherished her time in bed with Sephiroth, finding his presence surprisingly soothing when they slept, and the night terrors being rare now with him beside her person.

"Just checking," said Sephiroth simply.

(Konoha-1 Week Later)

The Leaf was busy with anticipation of the Chuunin Exams, as word spread of the Rookie Nine, and Maito Gai's team being sent to participate in the rank advancing event. Many held high expectations for Gai's team and even Team 8 after surviving the battle with the One-Winged Angel of Death with the story of their mission to Wave Country becoming legendary. They exaggerated with how they face Sephiroth in a great battle that shook the land and made the sky rumble from their intense fight for survival against their foe.

"Do they really need make the story of _that_ mission more inflamed then it already is? Its like they think such theatric tales will bring fear to the hearts of those traveling here for the exams," said Tenten, as she really didn't mind simple praises from people, but this was getting ridiculous, and would complain more if it wasn't for the increased business their shop was getting.

"I agree. Some of the Clan Elders are have been pressuring my Uncle to remove the Cage Bird Seal on my head and to place it on Hinata-sama's in the belief my potential has long since surpassed hers regardless of Hokage-sama's training," said Neji, as he had spent a certain amount of time in his cousin's presence partially on the Clan Elders' orders, and observed Hinata's training regiment while talking to her about things not related to things not pertaining to Shinobi.

"Unbelievable! Your cousin gets an honor countless others would kill for and they want to do that to her. I don't know what's worse! Her getting possibly being branded with the seal or the fact they want it to keep Hinata-san under their thumb regardless if she learns Tsunade's skills that will never be used in the process?" said Tenten, as she hated that seal on Neji head, and the thought of it being used on a fellow female Shinobi made her blood boil.

'I agree,' thought Neji before he froze suddenly, as a chill went up his spine, the hairs on the back of his head stood on end, and the unmistakable energy signature of Namikaze Sephiroth was felt by his keen senses.

Tenten sensed it too, as she reached for one of the many weapons in her possession, and looked around for their foe that was clearly nearby. Neji found him first however, due to his Byakugan being active, and it was clear by the look on his face that he knew where the swordsman was at the moment.

"Where is he Neji?" said Tenten, as she looked around, and wished Lee was here to give them an extra pair of eyes.

"He's at the Academy. Along with a girl wearing a mask and Shinobi outfit. They seem to be...talking to what appear to be a trio of Genin from...a village I don't recognize from the symbol of their headbands," said Neji before his eyes widened and began rushing towards the Academy.

"Neji wait up! What's the rush?" said Tenten surprised that her teammate could move this fast.

"Its Hinata-sama! She's walking their with her Genin team and Jounin sensei. She will see him in less then 2 minutes!" said Neji, as he didn't know if Sephiroth would strike down his cousin this time around, or what his intentions were should the two meet.

Personally, Neji didn't want to know, and didn't want to see it happen.

"Crap!" said Tenten, as she hurried along with him to the Shinobi Academy, and hoped their third teammate was there waiting for them.

They were going to need _all_ of his "Flames of Youth" today.

(Konoha's Shinobi Academy-Third Floor)

"Do you three know what needs to be done?" said Sephiroth looking at the trio with eyes filled with a serious intensity that spoke of no room for failure to do anything else, _but _toobey him, and knowing the price that would be paid if they didn't except that.

"Yes Sephiroth-sama," said the trio at the same time knowing their orders stood from what Orochimaru told them though Sephiroth managed to alter them should the plan for the termination of Uchiha Sasuke not go as planned.

"Good. The first part of this exam will be the hardest. Survive this and you will have the means to complete the mission," said Sephiroth, as he wore a Sound village headband on his forehead, and had his papers brought with him that had him down as being the Jounin sensei of these three.

Granted, the title of Jounin sensei was just a formality then anything, but he did teach them some things that Orochimaru didn't during the short time they were his, and that involved using their heads more then the toys the Sannin gave them from the start. The mind was the most powerful weapon the human body possessed and Sephiroth himself had proven that time and again in the past.

In truth, all the Sound team needed was patience, and not letting their individual as well as group pride get in the way of things. He beat that quite literally into their heads since Orochimaru gave them to him with Haku's help and tested them by pushing all three to them to the brink of nearly losing their minds.

"We understand Sephiroth-sama," said the trio again acting as one in speaking before they left for the room behind them knowing that they were truly ready thanks to their teacher.

"You make a good teacher Sephiroth-sama," said Haku seeing Sephiroth himself looking at the door shutting behind his Genin team with a faraway look on his face.

"They could become great Shinobi one day. Not like you of course, but certainly Jounin level, and could be quite devastating in the right hands. It's a pity Orochimaru sees them being used only for the sake of being pawns in this game against Konoha," said Sephiroth before turning around to head for the room where all Jounins were allowed to congregate regardless of what village they were from.

By now, word will reach the Fifth Hokage of his return to the Leaf with the Genin team from Sound, and wish to seek an audience with him. Before that happened though, the swordsman wanted to see, which Shinobi of the Leaf that were Jounin senseis had signed up their teams for this little event, and make a note of who could be a threat during this exam.

Even though pawns could never become players during a game, Sephiroth always felt they could become more then their current rank _if_ played just right, and he so wanted to see his team to shine their brightest before Orochimaru burned them out.

Of course, such thoughts on the matter were abruptly halted when he along with Haku had turned the corner to find Genin team 8, and their Jounin sensei Yuhi Kurenai of Konoha stopping mere seconds from colliding with them. Instantly Kurenai leaped back, as did Shino, and Kiba with Akamaru growling fiercely at the swordsman. Haku for her part drew senbon needles and was prepared to defend her Master from these weak fools.

What neither side counted on was Hinata was standing right in front of Sephiroth looking him right in the eyes and the One-Winged Angel looking back into hers. The Hyuuga girl knew she was doing a full body blush from being so close to him, as she always did long before Sephiroth became Sephiroth, and yet she couldn't bring up the mental command within her brain to tell the legs she possessed to backup away from him.

"Hinata! Move away from him," said Kurenai, as she feared for her students life, and knew any hope of stopping Sephiroth from capturing Hinata was slim to none right now.

"Hello Hyuuga Hinata. You honor me again by gracing my presence with your own in such a short time since the last moment we had together back in Wave Country," said Sephiroth, as he saw sensed killer intent from Haku rising at his close proximity with Hinata, and his words to the Hyuuga girl.

"T-Thank you Namikaze Sephiroth. W-What brings y-you to K-Konoha?" said Hinata trying to be respectful to him while seeing the headband on his forehead.

"The Chuunin Exams actually. My team is participating and I just saw them off. You're here to participate in the exams too I hope?" said Sephiroth seeing Hinata nod while he also sensed her teammates not liking the close proximity they were in.

"Y-Yes," said Hinata truthfully despite knowing Kurenai-sensei would disapprove of her admitting it.

Then again, denying it would be to lie, and liars never had good fortune when within an arms reach of Sephiroth.

"Good. You and your team will go far if you can survive the first part of the exams. Still, be mindful not to let it go to your head, and remember to keep your mind focused at all times no matter what," said Sephiroth smiling at Hinata, who now felt her face had been set on fire, _figuratively_ of course, and could only nod at his words while he now slowly walked around her.

Haku mentally growled at the Hyuuga girl, as the desire to ram her senbon needles into Hinata's slim neck, or her eyes now becoming something of an irritating itch the ice user felt almost _compelled_ to scratch right now. However, the urge left her when Sephiroth stopped to look at Haku with a frown, and shaking of his head in disapproval. It made the ice user's heart want to freeze up and shatter at the notion of receiving her Sephiroth-sama's disapproval over such jealously. To her, it was a proverbial punch to the face, or the gut while telling Haku that if she kept this up he might cast her aside for letting such an emotion cloud her judgment.

Instantly, she was at his side, head down like a shamed dog beside its owner after being caught doing something wrong, and knew a punishment was going to happen the moment they were alone. Not that Sephiroth had ever punished her, but then again she had never done anything to warrant a punishment until now, and was more then a little terrified at being punished by her Master. She had let emotional jealousy get the better of her, in a semi-public area for that matter in front of others, and could be considered a weakness against him to exploit in the future to possibly kill him.

"Stay away from Hinata," said Kurenai to the swordsman in a protective Motherly way rather then speaking like a Jounin sensei.

"Do not make threats you cannot backup Yuhi Kurenai. Unlike me, you do not have the required power to backup your threat, and not one of your fellow Jounin can help you should the desire to achieve it was there," said Sephiroth in chilling voice that made the woman tense before walking away from all of them.

"I'm sorry Sephiroth-sama," said Haku in a whispered voice.

"I know you are Haku," said Sephiroth calmly though his voice was a bit cold for Haku's liking when she heard it.

"May I inquire to what my punishment is?" said Haku, as she needed to know what it was ahead of time, and know not to make the same mistake again in order to prevent such a punishment in the future.

"You will sleep in a separate bed until the second stage of the Chuunin Exams are over. At the same time, I will not come to comfort you in the event of night terrors, and no amount of begging will change my mind," said Sephiroth, as he knew such a punishment was harsh to the girl, and judging by the sudden stop in Haku's walking he knew that she knew it too.

"I...I understand Sephiroth-sama. I accept my punishment," said Haku, as she only had herself to blame for receiving it, and would not protest knowing such an act would not change his decision.

If anything, it would only make the punishment worse, and Haku didn't want _that_ to happen either.

"Dynamic entry!" said Rock Lee appearing out of nowhere, as he threw a flying kick at Sephiroth, and would have it if not for Haku intercepting the limb by catching it before throwing him into a nearby wall.

"Lee!" said Tenten quickly drawing out two kamas after seeing the masked girl throw her teammate away.

"Where's my cousin? Where is Hinata-sama" said Neji in his Gentle Fist stance.

"In the room down the hall at the very end with her team and Jounin sensei. Why?" said Sephiroth calmly while Lee got up from the ground shaking his head to get the cobwebs out.

"Why are you here?" said Neji seeing the headband more clearly on Sephiroth's forehead with the musical note symbol.

"The same reason you are here, only my reason is different, and more professional. Come Haku. Let's go see who else will send their teams to this test and doom," said Sephiroth, as he walked towards the two members of Maito Gai's team, and saw them tensing with each step he took with neither one wanting to drop their guard.

"It would be wise to lower your weapons and limbs unless you wish to lose them. If Sephiroth-sama wanted you dead he could have done it easily without my interference," said Haku coldly, as she saw them look at her, and then at Sephiroth before doing what was advised to be in the best interest of their health.

Letting the two pass, the members of Genin team 9 watched them leave, and then decided to head to where the other Genin teams were located.

They would need to have a serious talk with the others before the exams started if what Gai told them was true about Kakashi's team entering.

(Jounin Waiting Room-10 Minutes Later)

"Did you hear the rumors?" said Kakashi to Gekko Hayate coughing slightly a nice safe distance from him.

"About Sephiroth being here? How could I not. It caused quite a panic. Even now the Hokage is having the ANBU searching for him," said Hayate, as he hope Yugao would be okay, and didn't do anything foolish in encountering Sephiroth alone.

"She also has a group of ANBU near the Academy for the exams in case he heads there to kill the next generation of Shinobi. It would be a big disaster for the Leaf and discredit her in being Hokage of the Leaf if it happened," said Kakashi, as he continued reading his book, but when the door behind him opened, and turned to see if it was one of his fellow Jounin...the orange tomb of perverseness fell to the ground in shock.

Namikaze Sephiroth was standing in the room.

Poor Hayate went into a coughing fit while trying to draw his sword with little success at seeing what his fellow Jounin saw while cursing the person who thought of putting the Shinobi alert button right near the door. To Sephiroth, it was quite an amusing sight to see the two stunned Shinobi in the room looking at him, and their different reactions to his presence.

"Dynamic entry!" said Maito Gai from behind trying to strike against Sephiroth with the result being the same for him as it was Lee only this time the One-Winged Angel caught the kick before sending the man down hard onto the floor with enough force to break his leg.

"Don't do that again Maito Gai because the next time you do...I'm going break your neck instead of your leg," said Sephiroth healing the broken leg, then he walked further into the room, and sat down with Haku right beside him while eyeing Kakashi behind her mask ready be her Master's shield.

"So have you come here to gloat about the Leaf's mission to Wave Country nearly being a disaster with two teams leading it?" said Kakashi, as he had read the mission report, and had to admit it was brilliant what Sephiroth did.

"Do I really look to be the arrogant type? I'm here because _my_ Genin team is here for the Chuunin Exams and I was under the impression this was where Jounin senseis go to talk among themselves. Though Suna's Jounin sensei seemed..._distant_ when I spoke with him briefly in the hall. I wonder why?" said Sephiroth looking at Haku, who could only shrug, and did when it appeared the question was aimed at her.

"I see. So you joined a minor village knowing you could enter Konoha using one of the laws of the international treaty setup by the Daimyos of the Elemental Countries for the Chuunin Exams," said Kakashi, as he saw the headband on Sephiroth's forehead, and saw it was from a village he didn't recognize.

"Of course. After I heard about my Godmother becoming the new Hokage, I was curious about her, and wanted to see how she was running the village in the _Sandaime's_ place," said Sephiroth, as he saw Kakashi's eye narrow at the mention of the Third Hokage, and knew it would touch a nerve for the Jounin.

"You should treat the man with respect. The Sandaime Hokage was a great Shinobi in his day," said Kakashi seeing Sephiroth scoffing slightly.

"In his prime perhaps. However, in the end he died a spineless old man, and was more of a politician then a Shinobi," said Sephiroth while hearing Kakashi's hands tighten into fists and ignored the glare from Hayate.

"You're just saying that because your bitter over what the Sandaime, the Yondaime, and Jiraiya did to your previous body," said Kakashi trying to hit the same nerve Sephiroth had hit him with.

"Actually I'm not bitter. How could I be bitter when I killed him and my Father on the same night," said Sephiroth seeing Kakashi's shocked and confused look on his masked face.

"What do you mean? The Yondaime Hokage died 12 years ago!" said Kakashi, as the cruel memory of that moment flooded his mind, and the urge to ram a kunai into the One-Wing Angels face was starting to feel more appealing with each passing second.

"Yes, _but_ a piece of his soul was still connected to the seal in the off chance the Kyuubi could get out, and I met him within my seal the night of my return. We had a few...words before my Mother appeared and helped me push my Father into Kyuubi's cage for the fox to get his revenge," said Sephiroth chuckling at the memory while Kakashi was livid at this information.

"YOU SOLD OUT YOUR OWN FATHER TO THE FOX!" yelled Kakashi in anger now standing up not caring if anyone heard them and actually preferred someone did.

"Considering what he did to his own son with the help of Sandaime and Jiraiya I think it was only fair for him to understand the ramification that resulted from of his actions. The fact my Father didn't care about how I was abused by the people of the Leaf when I was Uzumaki Naruto only gave me further incentive to see him suffer and my Mother was in full agreement with me," said Sephiroth not caring that Kakashi yelled and was expecting it given the man's deep connection to them both.

"Your Father was a great man and all he asked of you was to endure a little pain to ensure lives would be spared an unholy wrath by a monster made flesh!" said Kakashi angrily, but the anger was _nothing_ compared to Sephiroth when the swordsman turned his now icy eyes at the Jounin, and rose to look the man even closer in proximity.

"A _little_ bit of pain? When I was Uzumaki Naruto and just 8 years old there was a group of those so called people my Father wanted me to protect tried to set me on _fire_! They were laughing, calling me a demon, an abomination while saying they were going to heaven for killing me, and doing Kami's work in ending my life. A year earlier, another group tied me to a tree, and used my body as target practice for their throwing weapons. The people of this village are _scum_ and the fact you would side with them knowing they brought the prophecy on themselves makes you just as bad as them," said Sephiroth, as he saw Kakashi narrow his eye at him, and wanted to slug the boy hard in the face.

"It was necessary for the good of the people of the Leaf and the world," said Kakashi in a deadly voice.

"It was necessary to amuse a mob of bigots and arrogant fools. People like you think that just because you survived so many horrible things that you're invincible and that you are superior to others because of it. _Your_ _not_! You and the rest of the fools that believe such nonsense are the reason I exist. I exist in this world to remove such people from it and to bring things into a proper balance," said Sephiroth before leaving the room with Haku beside him, as they had enough of this place, and those within it.

"Is what Sephiroth said true Kakashi?" said Hayate, as he had heard rumors about the boy's abuse, but never had some of it confirmed by the kid himself, and with such hate behind the words.

"It doesn't matter. The point is the boy should have sucked it up like sensei wanted," said Kakashi while glaring at Sephiroth's back.

"I doubt you would be saying that if you were in his shoes. Remember Kakashi, you say he should suck it up now, but if you were in his situation, I think the tune you are singing would change, and wouldn't be so accepting of the Yondaime's decision," said Hayate before he left the room to report to the Hokage of his sighting of Sephiroth.

"Idiot. What does he know?" said Kakashi before sitting back down.

"He knows enough my rival. He knows that the Leaf brought the prophecy on ourselves and its people are too arrogant to admit it," said Gai having heard everything and let the swordsman pass him without resistance.

"Shut up Gai," said Kakashi, as he was in no mood to hear from people questioning his sensei, the Sandaime, or Jiraiya of the Sannin for that matter.

(Hokage's Office)

Tsunade was trying to hold onto her patience, as she waited for Sephiroth to be escorted into her office, and hoped the people that did weren't idiots to provoke him. All of the international laws the Daimyos setup were for the most part a two way street, as the host village, and country of the Chuunin Exams could be punished if there is evidence of the village mistreating its guests.

Even the Fire Daimyo had to play by the rules knowing that while Fire Country was the strongest of the Elemental Countries, could still be stopped by the overwhelming force of the other countries wanting to put the Feudal Lord in his place. The man had become arrogant with his power since the end of the last Shinobi war when the Yondaime took office and more so after the defeat of Kyuubi giving the Feudal Lord of Fire Country considerable bragging rights.

Arrogance was a poison on humanity and right now it infested most of the village and the only power higher then the Hokage's in Fire Country.

"Tsunade-sama! He's coming," said Shizune entering the room looking nervous.

Working quickly, Tsunade wanted Sephiroth to look upon her impressed at sight of his Godmother, and quickly removed all things that would make him think less of her. The female Hokage quickly hid the paperwork that she still needed to be finish, the sake', the emergency sake', the other emergency sake' for when Shizune took the others, and had to quickly make sure her own features were not out of place. Hair, skin, clothing, and even Tsunade's boobs needed to be checked to ensure everything was set for when Sephiroth stepped through that door.

Within moments of Shizune giving Tsunade a thumbs up, the door to the room opened, and Sephiroth entered with Haku by his side while ANBU were behind them looking ready to strike the moment they saw any signs of attack aimed at their Hokage. As for Sephiroth himself, he along with Haku were looking around the room before stopping at the Hokage's desk, and the current Hokage sitting behind it.

"Welcome back to Konoha Namikaze Sephiroth. Thank you for meeting with me. Leave us!" said Tsunade while smiling at her Godson before pointing at the ANBU to leave.

"With all do respect Hokage-sama, this _thing_ is responsible for killing your predecessor, and it would be risky to leave you here without protection," said the ANBU Captain, as he saw Sephiroth glance at him, and saw the smirk on the swordsman's face.

"I'm not asking. I'm _telling_ you, as a direct order from your Hokage, and you wouldn't be disobeying an order from your Hokage now, would you Captain?" said Tsunade, as she glared at the man, and waited until they _finally_ obeyed her orders.

"Some things in this village haven't changed since I was here last not that long ago," said Sephiroth sitting down in his chair while Haku did the same with her own though she made sure they were both free of potential restraints to capture him.

"Regrettably so I'm afraid. Sephiroth I...I want you to know that I wouldn't have left you here to the pain you suffered under my Grandfather's village. Your Mother and I were very close when growing up. Kushina was the daughter I always wanted and when she asked me to be your Godmother after all that had happened in my life in losing people I cared about...I couldn't refuse. After Kyuubi was sealed, the Sandaime came to see me, he said that you had died after the sealing due to the strain, and you along with the Kyuubi were destroyed. At the time, I had no reason to doubt my sensei since he rarely ever lied to me in the first place, and when I came back for his funeral after learning the reason behind his death...I just couldn't bring myself to mourn him properly. What your Father, my sensei, and my former teammate did to use you the way they did was wrong," said Tsunade, as she saw Sephiroth close his eyes for a second, and take a long deep breath while she held her own inside.

"I believe you. There are no lies in your words. Only sorrow laced with the truth. For that reason, I offer you this warning, and information regarding this village to protect those worth protecting," said Sephiroth sensing Haku's shock at him helping the Leaf.

"What warning? What piece of information?" said Tsunade, as she saw Sephiroth eye the wall to his right, and then motioned for Haku to deal with it in a second.

"Orochimaru plans to invade Konoha during the Chuunin Exams," said Sephiroth after Haku moved quickly, decisively, and threw a barrage of senbon needles at the wall he had looked at to reveal a now unconscious Root Shinobi that had been concealing himself under a Genjutsu before having been turned into a living pin cushion.

"I see. Anything else you can tell me?" said Tsunade, as she eyed the Root Shinobi on the ground, and snarled in anger at the fact this one of ANBU Captain level was listening on their conversation on the whims of Danzo.

Private security force her big breasts!

"Only that it's suppose to happen later in the game. He's getting all his pieces ready to invade while your pieces aren't even on the board. Even if they were, chances are that Orochimaru will know where to counter your pieces due to the spies in the Leaf, and other people wishing to take your title for themselves," said Sephiroth, as he saw his Godmother nod slowly knowing who was being referred to, and would make sure plans were put in motion to protect the Leaf on both fronts.

"I'll take care of it," said Tsunade before seeing Sephiroth rise from his chair to leave.

"My service here is done. Keep an eye on the Genin teams for these exams. Nothing is what it seems and the snake has the ability to shed its skin in order to prevent its death or capture," said Sephiroth, as he headed towards the door, and stopped when Tsunade called out to him.

"Sephiroth wait! If the people in the village were punished...would you come back to live here?" said Tsunade seeing him stop at the door to pause and weigh her words.

"In all honesty my Godmother, my answer is no to your question, and it doesn't matter if you did punish the people responsible for my suffering. The Fire Daimyo wouldn't let you punish them regardless. I know he supported the decision to have me suffer while I was in the form of Uzumaki Naruto and to have all those seals placed on my body," said Sephiroth, as he left the room, and didn't look back though Haku did before following behind her Master.

"That was an interesting conversation," said Shizune, as she saw just how protective the girl Haku was of Sephiroth, and how complex the swordsman seemed to be when they spoke.

"No shit. Even though he doesn't hate me, its clear Sephiroth is not happy with the Leaf, and I fear for the lives of those in the village that don't deserve his wrath. Even if such a number of people are only a handful," said Tsunade, as she sighed knowing things were getting out of hand, and it was through her Godson that it was happening.

Damn her sensei. Jiraiya, and any others that followed their line of thought.

(Konoha Streets-Moments Later)

Many people gave Sephiroth a wide open space to walk through the streets of the village, as the swordsman had a small smile on his face, and ignored the people whispering about him behind his back. He had heard all of it before, as they would say all their usual hate filled words, and wondering why the ANBU weren't here in this area to arrest or kill him. Many wondered who the masked person was beside him with the Sound headband, as the name of the Sephiroth's partner was kept tight lipped sealed by the Hokage herself, and that if the information got out then _everyone_ who knew Haku's name would face Ibiki along with Anko in the I&T Dept. for a little _chat_.

The last thing Tsunade needed was someone trying to attack the girl and unleash a fury that the Leaf had no hope of withstanding at the hands of Haku's Master.

"Monster!" yelled a young teary eyed child filled with anger in his voice now several feet behind Sephiroth while in the middle of the street with a kunai in hand.

Turning slowly to see the child, who called him that name, Sephiroth came face to face with a scarf wearing boy wearing the Sandaime's war helmet, and was wearing a child like version of the Sandaime's uniform. From his own memories, Sephiroth recalled him talking to the Sandaime about his Grandson, and this kid seemed to look just like the old Kage.

"So the Grandson of the Sandaime graces me with his presence. And he's ready for battle too!" said Sephiroth in an amused voice while smiling slightly at the fool hardy child.

"You killed my Grandfather! I, Sarutobi Konohamaru shall avenge him!" said the boy, as he had now got all eyes on both of them, and just about everyone waiting to see what would happen.

"I've killed people in three countries and in this lifetime alone. What's your point?" said Sephiroth with a slightly raised eyebrow.

"You had no right to kill him!" said the angry child before he charged at Sephiroth, but was stopped by a flash of white light, and the tip of the older boy's sword now touching the tip of the Sandaime's helmet.

"I had _no right_? Is that what you just said? Before you jump rash conclusions that could get you killed _child_, I suggest you learn _all_ the facts behind your Grandfather's demise, and not just what the arrogant people say just to spite me. Your Grandfather wronged me for first 12 years of my life. He fed me lies, he let people hurt me, and didn't care that I was constantly tormented by the fools around us. The man cost me a happy life to call my own and his debt had to be paid...by paying with his own life," said Sephiroth, as he saw the child look at him with denial, and would have shaken his head too if not for the tip of Masamune threatening to tear through it into the child's skull.

"He was a hero!" said Konohamaru defiantly.

"When he was younger, I'm sure the Sandaime was indeed the hero everyone made him out to be, and did his job nobly. However, the man I killed was a weak, sniveling old man, who had failed to understand the simple fact that some things cannot be stopped, and to try stopping them will only result in their manifestation. He let an innocent child suffer to prevent the sinner within that child from coming out, but the end result of his action just made that sinner come out, and let me take my revenge for the innocent part of my soul that should not have suffered in the first place. At the moment, you are too young to truly understand this, and worse is your mind has already been deeply poisoned by those that speak ill of me," said Sephiroth, as he dispelled his sword, and turned to leave with a shocked child in his wake.

"Where are you going? Why not kill me like you did my Grandfather?" said Konohamaru in shock and anger at being spared.

"Because despite your mentality being poisoned by those around you, I sense there is still a chance for it to be saved, and to see things from a _far_ greater perspective. However, in the event that you cannot, I will have no choice, _but_ to destroy you, and believe me when I say...I do not wish to do that," said Sephiroth, as he walked away from the still shocked child, and headed for some place peaceful where he along with Haku could relax.

Not many options considering just _where_ they were.

However, like his Genin team, Sephiroth just needed to survive today, and live through tomorrow so his plans could come to fruition.

(A/N: YAY! I updated. Hope you liked it. Until next time...PEACE!)


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6-Pieces being placed

Sephiroth found it was somewhat ironic that it would be his clan home of all places he would seek refuge from the rest of the Leaf, but sensed the location was the only form of housing that would let him rest without any outside interferences, and rightfully so due to his heritage. As for the Namikaze Estates itself, the building wasn't as massive as say the Hyuuga Compound, or the Uchiha District that once housed well over a hundred Uchiha. It was slightly smaller then the Hyuuga Compound, but still had a majestic look about it, and wasn't anything negative the more snobbish people of those other clans could say to change that fact.

Not that the members of the Uchiha Clan _could_ since all, but a handful were alive, and only one of them was in the village.

Even then, the Uchiha within the Leaf was just a runt at best, and a waste of a life at the very worst.

Touching the door with his hand, Sephiroth waited for the security seal to appear on the door, and scan his hand knowing it would check his chakra signature to see if he really was a Namikaze. Sure enough, the seal glowed green to indicate he was a Namikaze, and the seals surrounding the home from alarms to the man explosive tags underneath the foundation of the Namikaze Estates deactivated. Opening the door, the swordsman had motioned with his head for Haku to follow, and found the place to be well preserved in time from the last moments it was used over a decade ago. There was some dust, which was natural, and the smell coming from the kitchen told the two that it would need to be cleaned out of expired foods.

"Do you think it is safe to be here Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku looking around the house that once housed so many of her Master's kin.

"The security seal prevents anyone not of Namikaze descent from entering this home, which by the looks of things hasn't been touched since my..._Father _sealed it up, and there is no one else that could enter here now except myself. I'll reactivate the seals soon, but for now, we need to clean, and freshen this place up before we can rest," said Sephiroth, as he made several clones, and sent them to work.

"I will help them," said Haku, as she made a Shadow Clone herself thanks to her Master teaching the Jutsu to her, and warned about its high chakra usage.

"While they work, let us spend some time resting in one of our rooms, and regain our lost strength," said Sephiroth, as he walked up the stairs of the home, and found a room his Mother had made him upon learning she was pregnant.

Opening the door slowly, Sephiroth's eyes softened at the sight of the room made for a baby, filled with a Mother's love, and joy in bringing a child into the world. With his mind, Sephiroth pictured what life would have been like with Kushina raising him, and showering his person with love. The smiles, the laughter, the loving words that a Mother gives her child everyday with, and what every child wants to hear.

It was by this point, Sephiroth felt something watery run down his cheeks, and raised his hand to his face to touch the liquid that descended from one of his eyes. He was crying! The great Namikaze Sephiroth, the butcher of Midgar, the One-Winged Angel of Death with the power to bring all life to its knees, and not care about the consequences...was _crying_!

"Sephiroth-sama?" aid Haku, as she saw him staring at what was in the room, and then at his face before she gasped at the young swordsman's face to see the tears that ran down it.

"It's all right Haku. Just...seeing shadows of what could have been," said Sephiroth, as he shut the door, and walked away from the room.

'Sephiroth-sama,' thought Haku, as she looked at the door of the shut room, and realized what he meant by that statement.

It was then Haku knew what she had to do and damn the punishment that would come of it.

(Shinobi Academy Room #301)

"So he is here. In the village?" said Sasuke with a show of interest.

"Yes. From what he told us, Sephiroth is the Jounin sensei for the Genin team from the minor Shinobi village of Sound, and is using the laws setup by the Daimyos of the Elemental Countries to come here with temporary immunity," said Shino, as he saw Sasuke fuming at the considered "dead last" of their Shinobi Academy being titled the rank of Jounin, and a sensei to boot.

"Troublesome. Our original sensei was suppose to be _Sarutobi_ Asuma. When he learns that his Father's killer is in the village, there is no telling what will happen between those two, and if we'll have to bury another Leaf Shinobi," said Shikamaru, as he ran a hand through his hair, and saw his teammates were slightly scared by this news.

"What skills do you think the Sound team has? I wonder how strong they are if they were trained under Sephiroth," said Kiba, as he glanced slightly at the team on the side keeping to themselves despite the looks people gave them at hearing the Leaf Genin talk about their sensei.

"In any case, we need to keep an eye on them, and be cautious during these exams should we be required to fight," said Shino while eyeing Hinata seeing her trying not to think about fighting Sephiroth's team.

There was no telling what the swordsman really thought of Hinata or why he kept on stating the potential she had was almost monstrous to his point of view.

"They're nothing compared to an Uchiha. Just a bunch of runts taught by a dead last, who is considered strong among weaklings, and are no doubt weak themselves," said Sasuke waiting for the Genin team to attack him in anger, and allow everyone to see them be shown up by his elite superiority.

Had Sephiroth not taught them patience, then that might have happened, and forced the Sound team for everyone to see what they could do from the start. However, they didn't rise to the challenge, and instead looked at the Uchiha with a bored look on their faces before looking away.

_When someone tries to provoke you into fighting by forcing your anger to the surface, use it against them by ignoring their words, and make it seem like your provoker is the one being pathetic. They in turn will become angry, wanting to lash out, and make their own moves predictable. One of you may have to reveal a small sample of your skills, but a small price to pay in order to take down someone supposedly stronger, and better in being a Shinobi._

And true to Sephiroth's words of wisdom he empowered their minds with, the Uchiha got angry at not being acknowledged for his words, and tried to charge forward had his own teammates stopped it. Not that it mattered, as it had the direct results of making Sasuke look weak, and hot headed in front of everyone not from the Leaf to use in the future should they encounter him. It made the Sound team look professional, as well as a force to be reckoned with, and the further made Namikaze Sephiroth a more notorious figure in people's minds.

"All right listen up! The first part of the Chuunin Exams start now so everyone take a seat to sit down in and shut up unless I tell you to speak!" said the scarred face proctor of the room that was Morino Ibiki.

'It's a good thing Sephiroth-sensei taught us to be patient. That outcome could have made us look like fools,' thought Dosu, as he went to his assigned seat, and waited for the paper test before him to be handed out.

(Hokage Tower-30 Minutes Later)

"We can't let him leave here! He needs to be punished!" said a Civilian Councilman with light red hair that in a certain light could be mistake for a light shade of pink.

"And how _exactly_ do you intend for that to happen councilman Haruno? The boy is now an official member of the newly formed Sound village in Rice Country and the laws of the treaty during the founding of the Shinobi villages was quite clear. His Genin team is taking the first part of the exam right now and has temporary immunity until his team fails or makes it to the end of the exams," said Tsunade, as she knew the people before her would want a meeting to discuss this, and hated the fact it happened so soon after she spoke to her Godson.

"The moment the Chuunin Exams ends, we order every ANBU, and Jounin to place him under arrest before throwing him in a cell with Ibiki. Afterwards, Inoichi can go into his mind, and then destroy Sephiroth from the inside," said the Haruno Councilman knowing if anyone could destroy their enemy it was those two.

"It's not possible. The laws on the matter are clear, straightforward, and any attempt to work around them is impossible. After the Chuunin Exams are over, all contestants that are from foreign Shinobi villages have 24 hours to leave, and not a minute sooner. If you provoke such things, it will bring down the wrath of other countries, and their Shinobi too. Fire Country cannot withstand the might of so many possible enemies that would leap at the chance to destroy us over something like this," said Aburame Shibi, who under Tsunade's orders was to research the laws thoroughly before the meeting started, and help her prevent a major incident.

"So we just let him go? After all he's done? He killed the Sandaime! Not to mention the Kyuubi inside of him makes his life all the more forfeit!" said the Haruno Councilman, as he wanted the former blonde killed twice over, and remove the village's stain from it.

"And what have you all done to him? How much abuse did he have to take before you were satisfied? How much?" said Tsunade, as she couldn't take this meeting anymore, and hated the fact these arrogant fools wanted to provoke Sephiroth like a kid with a stick would jab a sleeping dragon right in the eye.

"The Sandaime had...," said the Haruno Councilman, but was silenced by Tsunade's fist hitting the desk, and the killer intent that covered the room.

"The Sandaime was an old fool! He should have left the boy in _my _care rather then trying to prevent a prophecy he helped bring about by letting you bakas here hurt the boy. I know my old sensei had the support of the Fire Daimyo for this, but I _don't care_ if he did because the Sandaime was _wrong_, and so was the Fire Daimyo for giving his blessing on the matter," said Tsunade, as she heard the gasps of the people in the room, and saw them looking at her like she just denounced Kami.

"Hokage-sama, if the Fire Daimyo hears you say that he'll strip of your title, and imprison you for such blasphemy," said Koharu, as she eyed Danzo give a brief smirk, and knew the man would let such information slip.

"Let him find out! I don't care since it's the truth and he's just being an arrogant prick in not seeing it. This village along with Fire Country need me more then I need either them right now. Without my help, the Leaf wouldn't even be considered the strongest Shinobi village anymore, and would start to decline in power. This meeting is over! Get the Hell out of here before I make you!" said Tsunade, as she pointed to the door, and glared at the people in the room that wanted to do what she felt was the stupidest thing in the world in wanting to take down Namikaze Sephiroth.

It couldn't be done.

(Namikaze Estates-Sometime Later)

Sephiroth had awakened from his slumber in the King Size bed of the Master Bedroom of his once great family, finding it to be just as comfortable as the last bed he had rested in back centuries ago when things were much different compared to now, and looked at the figure sleeping next to him with a frown. The figure that was Haku had approached him, as he was about to enter his bed, wearing crimson robes that did little to hide the growing figure the female ice user possessed, and walked up to his person before hugging him with all her strength.

It was only when Sephiroth felt her fingers hit a specific pressure point just below his neck near his right shoulder did the silver haired swordsman realize what had happened before sleep claimed him and the ice user apologizing for such actions. Right before his mind fully entered the land of dreams after being placed on the bed, Sephiroth had heard Haku's robes leaving her body, and then felt that same feminine form move on top over his before telling him that she would accept any punishment after this. That this physical contact was more for him then for her and that didn't want him to suffer from things from his past that kept plaguing his mind.

For his part, Sephiroth was confused on how he could punish Haku for this, and found that he couldn't find it in his mind to do such a thing. What Haku had said about the body contact when they slept was indeed more for himself then for her in easing his mind when asleep. Though Sephiroth was sure it was an added bonus for the female ice user to help forestall his initial punishment after what happened with Konoha's Genin team 8 with her killer intent aimed at Hinata.

Could he even punish her for that now? Could he punish her for that when it was clear this action Haku caused had helped give him _the_ most peaceful slumber he's ever had in possibly..._forever_! Her loyalty to him was beyond anything he had ever seen in this life or his past back in SOLDIER when most would have despised him for what he was despite the cruelty behind his actions.

No. He couldn't punish Haku now. Loyalty counted for something and this girl had given it to him without hesitation in her actions. Watching his back when walking, even though it wasn't even warranted, and eyeing for all potential threats when he knew who was a threat to his person before she did.

Trying to rise from his bed, Haku's right hand on his chest held onto him further, and Sephiroth heard the girl mumble his name while trying to keep him in the bed. Deciding to humor the girl, Sephiroth laid back on the bed, but raised his right hand to create an orb of energy, and said "Scan: Leaf Academy Room #301" in a whispered voice. The end result of his spell showed him seeing the students finishing the written part of the exam and a strange if not wild purple haired woman quite literally _crashing_ right through the window of the room to reveal herself to be the next proctor.

"Haku its time to get up," said Sephiroth, as he needed to have a moment with his team before the next part of the exam started, and knew his window was only open for a short time.

Besides, he wanted to make his presence known to the other Genin, and put another part of his plan into action.

"I don't want to Sephiroth-sama and you need your rest," said Haku in a sleepy voice, as she looked up at him, and had to hold back this urge to kiss him like they were lovers.

"I've rested enough thanks to your efforts Haku. Consider my standing punishment now lifted," said Sephiroth, as he saw the girl become more awake, and then look at him with disbelief on her face before glomping onto him with incredible force.

"Thank you Sephiroth-sama. I'm not worthy of your mercy," said Haku, as she had tears of joy flowing down her face, and felt Master's hand touch her back.

Directly in the middle of the back too so he couldn't and wouldn't appear to be invading Haku's personal physical space that made him out to be a pervert.

Not that Haku would mind if he did invade such space.

'No Haku. _I_ am the one not worthy,' thought Sephiroth feeling something deep within him that was the part of Uzumaki Naruto stirring slightly.

The part that still cared about others. The part of him that still existed and had on a deep subconscious level within his mind kept the reincarnated agent of death from acting like his past self centuries ago. It helped keep arrogance from consuming him like it had all those years ago with Cloud Strife and had helped bring about his own death at the spiky blonde's hands. In a way, the fragment of Uzumaki Naruto was like Cloud Strife, but in a good way to help Sephiroth learn from past mistakes, and to remind himself that it was okay to open up one's heart.

If only just slowly and one inch at a time.

(Outside the Forest of Death)

"Okay maggots, this sensation behind me is the one, and the only Forest of Death that you will be entering in the next 15 minutes. Now to keep the Leaf from being harassed by your village if you're not from here, forms of consent will be handed out, and basically they will read that the Leaf along with the proctor for this part of the Chuunin Exams are exempt from persecution for any loss of life. So anyone want to back out now, this is the time, and to talk it over before we start. You have five days to get to the central tower in the middle of the Forest of Death with two scrolls with one we give you and the other is the opposite of what you have that another team possesses. In short, take down another Genin team with a different scroll then yours, and due it before the end of the fifth day to avoid any..._unpleasant acts_," said Anko, as she had one of the other proctors with her hand out the forms, and saw some of the Genin were looking scared.

But not entirely from the Forest of Death or herself.

"Its him!" said one Genin from Mist in awe.

"It's the One-Winged Angel himself!" said another from Ame seeing Sephiroth make his appearance known to the large group of Genin while heading towards his own.

Anko looked at the boy, who was said to have killed the Sandaime, and felt conflicted on the matter due to the old man helping her out when she came back to the Leaf. After the bastard traitor Orochimaru had given Anko the prototype Curse Seal years ago, it was the Sandaime himself, who defended her from the Councils, and being given a chance to prove she wasn't like him. Still, Anko was also a witness to the abuse the kid before her that became Sephiroth had suffered, and heard from Iruka himself that the Sandaime had a hand in it. It seemed hypocritical in Anko's mind that the Sandaime would let a child suffer and yet the old man saved her from such pain while growing up. It didn't make any sense and yet here the quite handsome looking kid was walking towards his students with the masked Shinobi beside him.

"Sephiroth-sensei!" said the Sound Genin at the same time before kneeling out of respect for him.

"Rise and report," said Sephiroth simply with the team obeying.

"We are about to enter the next stage of the exams Sephiroth-sensei," said Dosu for his group seeing them nod in agreement having signed the form the second it was in their hands.

"Good. Don't play around. Just do what needs to be done for this part of the exam. Am I clear on that fact?" said Sephiroth looking at each of them with his piercing gaze.

"Crystal clear Sephiroth-sensei," said the trio at the same time.

"Good. I expect all three of you after this part is over. If you don't...," said Sephiroth with his eyes glowing slightly and they knew what that meant.

"We understand Sephiroth-sensei," said Dosu bowing his head with the other two on the team following his action.

"All right! Enough talk. Is everyone ready? Then move your assess!" said Anko drawing everyone away from the group from Sound before the gate doors opened.

"Go and don't forget the side mission. Get the scroll you need first, plus another one to be your backup, and then take out your target. Since you are associated with me, expect quite a few people to come after you, and the scroll in your possession," said Sephiroth to his team before they nodded and left through their gate.

"So you're the infamous gaki everyone is talking about like you are some kind of big bad boogieman," said Anko walking up to Sephiroth while the masked Shinobi looked at her with killing intent.

"You will address Sephiroth-sama by his name or else I will cut out the majority of your tongue," said Haku with venom in her voice at the disrespect Sephiroth was getting.

"That's enough Haku. She means well," said Sephiroth, as he knew the girl wasn't acting protective of him out of jealousy like before with Hyuuga Hinata, and let the killer intent slide knowing Kimimaro was the same way with them when the swordsman didn't add the -sama suffix to Orochimaru's name.

"I'm sure she does. Still, I find it hard to believe the Hokage was taken down by you since your Academy records were not well... not what one would call at prodigy level," said Anko though she did sense this kid had killed and was no stranger to the sight of blood like so many kids were his age.

"That was a shell of a boy suffocating constantly under wave after wave of lies. I'm not him anymore," said Sephiroth though that wasn't a _complete_ lie, as there was some form of Uzumaki Naruto living inside of him, but the last piece of his life was a means to prevent himself from being a totally heartless monster like he had been centuries ago.

"Yeah I can tell. Well, I'm going to sit here, and listen to the Genin in there cry out for their mommies. Want to stay and listen?" said Anko seeing how Sephiroth surprisingly shaken his head no.

"There's no need. I've heard such screams before. They're all the same," said Sephiroth in a whispery voice before walking away from the Special Jounin, but stopped when a battle cry came from above, and Sarutobi Asuma was coming down upon him with a furious rage of a 500 pound Gorilla.

Sephiroth moved out of the way, as did Haku, and Anko though she quickly motioned for one of the proctors to inform the Hokage of what was happening while she would try to get the situation under control.

"_You_! You damn monster!" said Sarutobi Asuma, as he rose from the crater his body, and fist made while looking at the swordsman with angry bloodshot eyes.

"Judging by your appearance, I'd say you are related to the Sandaime Hokage, and wish to end my life like his Grandson tried to not that long ago," said Sephiroth, as his sword materialized, and Masamune was now ready to be used against this anger driven fool.

"You're damn right I do! My Father helped others around him and you go snuffing him out like a candle without any remorse!" said Asuma getting out his trench knives and wasn't about to be intimidated by this so called One-Winged Angel of Death that had everyone spooked.

"Your Father was an old fool that betrayed the convictions he lived by. So did my Father for that matter so I think the two are in good company right now..._in Hell_!" said Sephiroth knowing it would provoke the Jounin into a fight.

And he was right.

"Bastard!" said Asuma charging at Sephiroth, but Anko used her Hidden Shadow Snake Jutsu, and bound the Leaf Shinobi to prevent him from throwing his life away.

"You can't attack him Asuma. If you fight him in an unsanctioned battle, then Konoha itself will take a hit by breaking international laws, and that will bring down your family's reputation," said Anko, as she saw Asuma struggling against her snakes, and glaring at her with anger.

"Like _you_ of all people truly care about the Leaf. You're just like that traitorous bastard Orochimaru!" said Asuma making Anko tense and become angry herself at hearing that from the son of the man she still respected despite certain acts that had come to light.

Any further discussion into the matter was ended when Asuma cried out in pain when a Nodachi class blade pierced his stomach and was cruelly twisted by Sephiroth. The boy had seen Anko's eyes become filled with pain at Asuma's comment and had heard the whispers about the Special Jounin when he was young when the people weren't talking about him. Granted, at the time the whispers about Anko reached his ears, he didn't know it was her, and only by seeing things for himself did the One-Winged Angel see just how much damage the Leaf had cause to someone aside from himself.

"And who are you to judge her Asuma-san? She restrained you in order to prevent you from being destroyed at my hands with Masamune. I'm still debating internally on the decision of whether I should give you the same death as your Father when I had him in a similar position. Then again...I think it would be best for the Hokage to deal with you," said Sephiroth before pulling out his sword and watched the Sarutobi before him fall to his knees.

"Monster!" said Asuma trying to break free from the snakes, but couldn't due to stab wound Sephiroth hit him with, and the Anko's mastery over snakes.

"Is that all you can say to me? The same thing over and over again? I hate parrots," said Sephiroth, as he walked away from the two just as a squad of ANBU, and the Hokage looking quite peeved about the situation.

"What the Hell is going on Anko?" said Tsunade seeing Asuma in his condition and hoped the Special Jounin had a good explanation right now.

Anko looked from the Hokage to where Sephiroth was, only to find him not there, and the one named Haku wasn't either. Cursing mentally at being left to hold the bag on this situation by Sephiroth, Anko told the Hokage what she wanted to know, and that Asuma tried to attack the silver haired boy in anger over the loss of the Sandaime. Fortunately, Sephiroth had basically left things in the Hokage's hands to handle it from the words he spoke, and was apparently not going to get too mixed up in this minor event.

What Anko or Tsunade knew however, was that Sephiroth had a reason for not killing Asuma, and anyone else in the village regardless of politics since being a Sound Shinobi was only a temporary thing for him. Like Orochimaru, the swordsman was using this time to put pieces into place, and right now his own weren't in position yet nor did he have enough of them. To make everything possible, it would require converting both sides to his own, and making those he recruited see the truth behind the lies.

Already, Sephiroth had Zabuza, the Demon Brothers, and of course Haku to count on should he need them even if the former three named were not currently around at the moment. Even without them here, he still had the chance to recruit Anko if cards were played just right, and then there was Kimimaro working for Orochimaru. The man was fanatically loyal to the snake Sannin and would need to be contacted with the promise of being cured _if_ he came to the Leaf for the treatment in secret to be a "secret surprise" for Orochimaru later.

Of course, the conversion of Kimimaro could have a negative aspect to it for Sephiroth, as the albino Kaguya may not wish to side with the One-Winged Angel, and may side with the Fifth Hokage out of appreciation for the cure. Still, it wouldn't be a total loss for him, as Sephiroth knew that one less piece on the board that was on Orochimaru's side was a small victory in his book, and at least his Godmother would have a powerful ally from it.

There were still others for Sephiroth to collect to his side.

(Forest of Death-Central Tower-Several Days Later)

"You didn't complete your mission to kill Sasuke," said Sephiroth simply from the look of disappointment on their faces.

As their sensei predicted, the team had been attacked soon after take off from the gate leading into the Forest of Death by a team from Iwa, and another from Kumo soon after that. They were easily taken down and good fortune was with them in having what they needed to make it to the Central Tower. _Unfortunately_, they needed to hunt down Team 7 upon orders from Orochimaru to kill Sasuke, and _that_ was when things went bad for them in regards to how that happened.

"We nearly succeed Sephiroth-sensei, but Orochimaru gave the boy a Curse Seal, and it activated briefly during his state of unconsciousness while we had to fight off several other Leaf Shinobi that came to his rescue. The Uchiha broke Zaku's arms during our confrontation with him due to the Curse Seal," said Dosu knowing that they had no real excuse for failure, but felt this was information he needed to know, and use for later.

"So that was his plan. I see it fully now. Depending on what happens next, its safe to say that none of you are safe from Orochimaru, and are considered expendable in his eyes," said Sephiroth, as he saw the three look at him in disbelief, but the look faded quickly with realization, and they saw the truth behind Orochimaru's purpose for them.

"What do we do?" said Kin, as she was technically the weakest of the group, and could be taken down easily after using her skills with senbon needles that had bells attached to them.

"For the moment, you play the game your in, and wait for the right moment to change things in your favor to survive. What is the next step in the exams from this point in the tower?" said Sephiroth seeing his team think for a second.

"We honestly don't know sensei. We have to wait another few days before the proctors come with the other teams that may have survived the Forest of Death," said Zaku, as he winced slightly at the feel of his broken arms, and wondered if he could even compete at all.

"Haku, take a look at Zaku's arms, and find out if he can compete in the next part of the exam. As for the you two, get some more rest, as this is a small grace period that allows it, and shouldn't be squandered," said Sephiroth leaving the room.

"Where are you going Sephiroth-sensei?" said Kin curiously.

"To check out the other teams that are here of course," said Sephiroth with a smirk on his face.

"I'll never understand what's going on inside his head," said Dosu shaking his head at his sensei.

"Me neither. Ow!" said Zaku, as he felt pain from Haku's grip, and tug of his arms.

(Few More Days Later)

"Welcome all of you to the next stage of the Chuunin Exams. Normally, after this portion of the exams is done, we would give everyone that made it this far a one Month reprieve to prepare for the Chuunin Exam Finals, and one on one competition. However, since there are still so many of you here despite what the second part of the Chuunin Exam was designed for, we will have a _Preliminary Exam_ to test your skills here, and thin out the group further with one on one competition," said Tsunade, as she saw the shocked looks on their faces, and the look of displeasure from Team 10 at having just arrived barely on the final day.

"Troublesome. We just get here and now this," said Shikamaru to himself.

"If anyone wants to quit now, raise your hand, and announce your intentions before we begin the Preliminaries," said Ibiki seeing Kabuto raise his hand and signifying that he was quitting.

"Can you still compete Zaku?" said Dosu seeing his teammates both arms still in a sling.

"Yeah. That Haku girl fixed them up so I can use them, but I don't need them knowing that until its too late, and their guard is lowered," said Zaku, as he had to admit the female ice user knew her stuff, and had them working better then he thought possible.

Though Haku did mention not to push himself beyond his current limits or else his limbs will beyond her skills to heal.

"Proctor I would like to forfeit," said Kabuto with a sheepish look on his face while the scarred man's own scrunched into a frown for a few seconds of silence.

"Very well. Strike him from the list," said Ibiki to Anko and watched the young man walk out of the room before glancing at the Hokage currently deep in thought on the matter.

After Team 7 came in, looking like they got the crap kicked out of them, Sai had told Kakashi, who reported to the Hokage about the incident involving Orochimaru, and the Sannin giving Sasuke the Curse Seal. He also reported that the Sound team had apparent orders from the Sannin himself to kill the Uchiha specifically during the second portion of the exam though it was unknown if Sephiroth was in on this too. Chances were, the One-Winged Angel of Death did know about this, but only about the order to kill Sasuke, and not about the Curse Seal to keep the swordsman somewhat in the dark should Ibiki ever get a hold of him for information.

Not that Ibiki expected Sephiroth to crack under pressure.

"Sasuke, you should drop out of this now because of the Curse Seal that Orochimaru guy gave you," said Sakura worriedly while Sasuke scoffed and had a hand on the seal the Sannin had placed on him.

"As if I would let my chance to become a Chuunin go at the drop of the hat. Itachi would continue on and so will I!" said Sasuke while glaring at Sakura.

"Itachi was stronger then you and also has a penis," said Sai making the Sound team near them snicker along with some of the others around Team 7.

"You're student Sai has...issues," said Kurenai to Kakashi while the Cyclops sighed in defeat at this embarrassment.

"You have no idea," said Kakashi while looking at Sasuke wanting to kill Sai right now.

"Open it up," said Anko into the receiver of the communication device and a portion of the wall behind her had opened up to reveal a screen with random names being generated.

"Two names will be selected at random to compete first while the rest of you watch until the next pair of names is randomly selected," said Ibiki, as everyone looked at the screen, and saw the first two names appear.

_Uchiha Sasuke VS Akado Yoroi_

"I'm first up huh? Not surprising," said Sasuke with a smirk.

"Hopefully your opponent will be able to help you find your own penis," said Sai earning him a seething look from Sasuke and laughter from the other Genin in the room that could no longer hold it back anymore.

'I'm going to kill you for that after I win,' thought Sasuke while everyone else went to the balcony area to watch the match.

"Who do you think will win Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku while her Master watched the match with mild boredom.

"Doesn't matter. I could care less about either of them," said Sephiroth seeing Sasuke glare at him for his words knowing they would be heard.

"Hey! Sasuke-kun is an Uchiha you freak! Show him some respect," said Sakura making everyone tense and look between the two for the pink haired girl's inevitable death.

"Being an Uchiha doesn't mean he gains respect from others. To gain respect from others, one must _earn _it, and earn it through harsh trials. Something your team knows _nothing_ about," said Sephiroth seeing Sakura become angry with rage.

"Are you blind you silver haired baka! Sasuke-kun's clan was wiped out and was the only survivor. How is that not harsh?" said Sakura walking up to him and nearly in his face.

"All he saw were the bodies of the dead _after _allthe killing ended. Not once has Sasuke stood over the bodies of those he's killed. Not once has destroyed lives with a swing of his sword. Not once has he heard the screams of his victims as they drew their final breath before crossing over to the other side. His brother spared him because Sasuke was not and is not worth killing. Not because your so called Last Uchiha has potential, but because he is a _runt_, and Uchiha Itachi pitied his little brother for what he was if not still _is_!" said Sephiroth looking the now terrified girl right in the eyes with killer intent aimed at the pink haired Genin.

"Enough! Sakura move away from Sephiroth where its safe," said Kakashi moving his now terrified student away from the boy, but giving him a glare, and got a smirk for his troubles.

"Don't bother trying to intimidate me Hatake-san. You have enough troubles with your own team as it is," said Sephiroth looking down at the floor to see Sasuke getting his chakra drained by his opponent.

And was losing badly.

"Enough! Uchiha Sasuke cannot continue. The winner is Akado Yoroi!" said Anko being the referee for this event since Hayate was a Jounin sensei and couldn't for the chance of their being a conflict of interest.

That and she wanted Sasuke's Curse Seal being sealed up right away was also an added incentive.

Reluctantly, Yoroi let Sasuke go from his draining hold, and walked away from the down Uchiha while the wounded pride of the so called "elite" of Konoha seethed in anger. He would have said something to Anko, which would probably got him in big trouble, and a trip to the hospital had it not been for Kakashi coming down quickly to take him to the sealing room to take care of the Curse Seal on his neck.

"One less nuisance to deal with today," said Sephiroth, as he looked at the board above going through a random selection of names.

_Inuzuka Kiba VS_ _Sabaku no Kankuro_

"Show time buddy!" said Kiba, as his dog barked in agreement, and the two leaped down to fight the Genin from Suna.

"Don't screw this up...or I'll kill you," said Gaara seeing his brother freeze for a second before descending the steps.

'Come on Kankuro old buddy. You can do this. Nothing to worry about...except for the clear threat of Gaara crushing your body should you fail,' thought Kankuro, as he sensed Gaara's gaze, and Temari's smirk at possibly having one less sibling in the family.

She was still peeved at him for using her makeup kit to cover his face when he was eight years old and called it "war paint" of all things.

"Ready? Fight!" said Anko, as she saw Kiba charge forward, and punched Kankuro right in the face that sent him into the wall.

"That was quick," said Kiba scratching his head before the smoke cleared to reveal that the person he hit wasn't a person at all, but rather a puppet that looked like its handler, and before the Inuzuka could react the puppet leaped out at him before putting the boy in a terrible vice grip.

"You were saying?" said Kankuro getting up from the ground and out of the wrappings that concealed him and saw Akamaru growling.

"You should tell your student to forfeit before he dies," said Sephiroth appearing next to Kurenai making the female Jounin jump in fright.

"And why do you care?" said Kurenai narrowing her eyes at him.

"I don't. That's your job...and right now you're not doing it," said Sephiroth simply while seeing the woman become angry at his words.

"He's right Kurenai-sensei. The limbs of the puppet that have Kiba trapped are blades and can cut into him easily. Even if Akamaru attacks the Puppet user, he takes the risk of the puppet digging its blades into Kiba, and killing him in the process," said Shino seeing the woman not liking the idea of listening to Sephiroth, but knew she would see the long silver haired swordsman's point, and concede to that fact.

"Kiba! Forfeit the match before you get killed," said Kurenai while looking at Sephiroth for a moment with a glare.

"All right! I forfeit! Now let me go," said Kiba, as he felt the blades becoming to close for comfort, and knew this could end up bad for him if he resisted further.

"Winner by forfeit is Sabaku no Kankuro!" said Anko seeing the boy from Suna use his manipulations of the puppet to let the Inuzuka go and went back up the steps with a smile on his makeup covered face.

He got to live for another day.

_Haruno Sakura VS Yamanaka Ino_

"Time to settle this forehead girl," said Ino, as she saw her friend smile, and the two now headed down to the arena floor to do battle.

Taking this time to get away from the boring fight between fan girls, Sephiroth walked over to Sabaku no Gaara, and ignored the red headed boy's killer intent. As for the boy's own siblings, they were on guard should the infamous boy try something, and even their Jounin sensei Baki was silently preparing a Wind Jutsu that would killer a lesser person.

"What do you want?" said Gaara feeling his sand stir on its own and "Mother" doing the same.

"To talk while we have a chance. Not here of course with so many ears around us attuned to the sound of my voice, but soon after these Preliminaries are over, we _need_ to talk, and about what makes people believe we are truly monsters in their eyes," said Sephiroth his eyes flashing crimson for a second and seeing Gaara's eyes widen slightly before nodding slightly.

Without another word, Sephiroth left the youngest of the Suna siblings to his thoughts, and saw both competitors on the arena floor knocking each other out in a double KO.

A boring fight just as Sephiroth knew it would be.

_Abumi Zaku VS Aburame Shino_

"Time to advance," said Zaku, as he headed to the steps, but was blocked by his Jounin sensei, and saw the serious look behind it.

"Remember, double the pride is twice the fall," said Sephiroth seeing Zaku nod before letting his student nod his head.

"Ready? Fight!" said Anko, as she wasn't sure why the Sound Shinobi was fighting due to his injuries, but chalked it up to Sephiroth wanting his student to fight regardless of the physical condition he was in, and to show what they learned.

"You should give up. Your arms are damaged and to use them now would only cause greater pain," said Shino in the hopes to end this quickly.

"Would you give up knowing your sensei is Namikaze Sephiroth?" said Zaku seeing the Aburame look up at Sephiroth and then back at him.

"Good point," said Shino, as he began to unleash a swarm of insects around his person, and move them around the two combatants.

"Damn this is really going to hurt. 'Decapitating Airwaves!'" said Zaku, as he focused on using his one arm to make the sound based attack, and blasted the wall of bugs swarming behind him.

"I really wish you hadn't done that to my colony," said Shino hearing the cries of the bugs from within his body and the loss behind it.

"And you shouldn't underestimate someone just because they're injured for its people like that who are the most dangerous," said Zaku, as he revealed his other arm was functional too, and was ready to fire a blasé of sound waves at Shino with little to no room to dodge.

"How very true. I did underestimate you Zaku-san. I honestly was hoping to provoke you into close combat by attacking your pride, but it didn't work, and now I see I have paid a heavy price in losing a good portion of my colony to you. For that reason, I forfeit my match, and wish to walk away from here to lick my wounds," said Shino knowing that the power behind that attack could destroy him at that current range and he couldn't let that happen.

"Winner by forfeit: Abumi Zaku!" said Anko, as she hoped the Sound Shinobi would put away his arms, and not make a scene.

'I won. Had I been my usual hotheaded self, things could have gone differently, and my arms could be in a more dire situation. Patience is indeed a useful weapon for one to have,' thought Zaku, as he returned to the balcony, and gave a deep bow of respect to his sensei for what the swordsman taught.

The matchups after that were pretty straight forward from their on, as Dosu fought Team 10's Akimichi Choji with Sound being victorious after knocking the larger Genin out with his sound creating bracer after the boulder of a boy crashed into a wall. The only one of the Sound Genin that didn't advance was Kin, but she was fighting Nara Shikamaru, and the boy was a tactical genius despite being so lazy having used his time in the Forest of Death to figure out a way to defeat her. Sabaku no Gaara fought Rock Lee with the two fighting an incredible battle that made Sephiroth actually clap in recognition to their hard fought battle. Sai defeated Kabuto's partner no problem by summoning multiple tigers out of ink and had them devour the flexible Genin to pieces. Sabaku no Temari defeated Isis Tenten in battle easily due to the fact Tenten was no match for the blonde woman's long range Wind Jutsu used by her iron fan.

All that was left was one final match of the Preliminaries.

_Hyuuga Hinata VS Hyuuga Neji_

'So we are to do battle after all,' thought Neji, as he turned to look at his cousin, and saw the hesitance in her eyes in wanting to hurt him.

'Damn it! Why now of all times?' thought Kurenai, as she saw her student shake a little, but the presence of one person changed all of it, and Hinata found her chin being lifted by Namikaze Sephiroth himself currently staring into her soul with his eyes that seemed to overflow with power.

"You are afraid to hurt your cousin," said Sephiroth knowing his eyes must be showing a form of caring that went against his nature in being a monster.

But just like the world changed so did he and Sephiroth knew he needed to help Hinata in this moment indecision.

"Y-Yes," said Hinata while her sensei near them was again gearing up to fight him.

"Understandable. You cherish your family. So few do these days. However, there are some times when we must put our personal feelings aside, and do what is required of us even if we disagree with it. This is one of those moments where you _must_ to prove your strength, even if its against family, and someone you care about. It will be hard, but I know you can do it, and that you can _win_," said Sephiroth with his voice becoming a near whisper and his face now almost touching hers.

"You really believe in me?" said Hinata, as she still had doubts about herself hurting someone, and from her own family no less with the skills she had been learning from the Hokage.

She had only just started mastering the super strength Tsunade always uses when fighting Shinobi or punching perverts like Jiraiya out of windows.

"Of course I do. Every time we have met, I keep telling you Hyuuga Hinata that your potential is there, but the only way it will come out, is if _you_ let it out, and that will not happen unless you possess the courage to take that first step forward," said Sephiroth, as he saw Hinata nod her head slowly, and then walk down to face Neji.

"If she dies because of this, then I will use all my power to make you suffer, and beg me to kill you," said Kurenai, as she knew Neji was a Prodigy of his clan, and feared that even with Tsunade helping Hinata that the match was not in her favor.

"The fact you do not believe in your student makes me question your right to be a Jounin sensei," said Sephiroth sensing the killer intent from the woman just a few feet from him.

"What did you just say?" said Kurenai, as she wanted to lash out at him, but knew that Haku would intervene, and get the Leaf in trouble for it.

"You act more like an overprotective Mother to her then a sensei. You act like Hinata is a fragile child, who will break under the slightest bit of pressure, and needs to be constantly smothered by your version of love. I do not see that," said Sephiroth, as he sensed more then saw Hinata's body become firm with resolve, and prepared to do battle with Neji.

"Then _enlighten _all of us and tell everyone what _you_ see when it comes to Hinata," said Kurenai, as she wasn't going to admit certain..._paternal_ instincts had come up, and ruin her chances to be Team 8's sensei after the Chuunin Exams were over.

"I see a warrior. A new ready to be molded warrior, who will become more powerful then anything you could dare dream, and...and...," said Sephiroth smiling down at the girl now battling it out in a thick and fierce Gentle Fist fight against Neji while she used her own flexibility into her Gentle Fist style to throw the older of the two Hyuuga off his game.

A style that would be banished by the orders of the Hyuuga Clan Elders.

"And _what_?" said Kurenai while looking at the match with her eyes, but listening to the boy with her ears, and so did everyone else.

Sephiroth paused wondering if he should even speak what he wanted to say next. Could he say it? There would be complications if he did? He didn't want to burden Hinata with so much and suffocate her with the attention he would no doubt give upon his coming statement for all to hear.

"_And_ possibly have the power...to _kill me_," said Sephiroth with his words whispered from his lips, but echoing throughout the room nonetheless, and everyone heard them.

Even Hinata and Neji fighting below with both Hyuuga stopping their battle to look up at him in shock at that statement.

'What did he just say?' thought everyone looking at him in shock while Haku looked at Sephiroth with sadness on her masked face along with Hinata since she didn't want to be the one to possibly kill him if it came down to it.

But Sephiroth spoke no more of the subject and just looked at Hinata with kind gentle eyes that told the Hyuuga Heiress he would explain it to her later. Nodding her head in understanding, Hinata moved quickly before Neji himself could refocus himself on the battle before him, and struck her cousin hard in the gut with what skill she had in using Tsunade's super strength to send the Hyuuga Branch member into the wall causing it to cave in.

"Winner by knockout: Hyuuga Hinata!" said Anko, as she saw Hinata bow to her cousin buried under the rubble, and then walked up to the balcony before stopping in front of the boy she had a crush on for so long.

That she _still_ had a crush on.

"Is that why you are encouraging me to get stronger? So that one day I will kill you?" said Hinata looking Sephiroth in the eyes while steeling her resolve on the matter.

"Should I need to be killed one day, there must be someone with the power to do it, but not just anyone can have it due to almost everyone wanting me dead, and such a power must be entrusted to someone that does _not_ wish to have that responsibility. And that person Hyuuga Hinata...is _you_!" said Sephiroth seeing Hinata shake her head at him while tears started to swell up in her eyes.

"I don't want to kill you Sephiroth-kun. I won't! You hear me? No matter what, I won't kill you!" said Hinata almost yelling her words for everyone to hear.

"Even still, I do want you to grow stronger Hyuuga Hinata, if only to defend yourself, and protect those you love with all your heart," said Sephiroth smiling at the girl seeing her looking at him still with those defiant eyes that practically yelled out what she had already told everyone in the room.

Hyuuga Hinata would not become the enemy of Namikaze Sephiroth and would _never _be the one to kill him. _Period_!

Seeing his work done, Sephiroth walked away from the Hyuuga girl, and towards Haku now holding onto him while looking at his face behind her mask. Sephiroth himself didn't need to look at the mask knowing that behind its enigmatic design, Haku was looking at him for the truth behind his statement, and praying to Kami that it wasn't true.

The mere fact she quickly embraced him in a hug told him that Haku knew it was indeed the truth.

"We need to talk," said Tsunade seriously, as she wanted to know just what the Hell was going on inside her Godson's head by saying what he just said, and wondering if he had suicidal thoughts running around in there.

"Later. I have business elsewhere that needs my attention," said Sephiroth, as he vanished from her sight with Haku, and to set things in motion.

There were still one more piece not in Konoha that needed to be summoned.

(A/N: YAY! I updated. Hope you all loved this one. I honestly don't know where my mind is going with this fic. I have no control over my mind at times. I haven't felt like this since I started C&D. Until next time...PEACE!)


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7-Loyalty Shifts

Sephiroth stared at Haku for a long moment, as she stared back at him, the mask being ripped off by her own hands the moment they were in the Namikaze Estates, and the young girl looked at him now with tears overflowing from the eyes. She had not been pleased in hearing Sephiroth's words about how that Hyuuga girl had the potential to kill him and even less pleased with her Master encouraging the girl to achieve it!

What was he thinking?

"Why?" said Haku simply.

"Why what?" said Sephiroth seeing her face looking more pained.

"Why did you tell everyone around you that _she_ had the potential to kill you? Why after making such a statement do you wish to encourage such a person to reach that potential?" said Haku seeing him smile gently at her.

"My words have several purposes Haku. For one, it will keep Hyuuga Hinata from being harassed by her clan, and get them to back off in using the Cage Bird Seal for a time. I also want Hinata to become strong enough to break through her timid shell and it can only be done by being trained under the tutelage of the Hokage. I have heard from some whispering Jounin that my Godmother has already started the training and I have seen the results of it in the Preliminaries," said Sephiroth seeing Haku's eyes widen.

"The final blow Hinata hit her cousin Neji with that gave her the win in the match. Senju Tsunade's superhuman strength!" said Haku seeing Sephiroth nod.

"Yes. Not truly perfected of course, but given the needed time, I have no doubt Hinata will master such a skill in record time, and everything else Tsunade teaches her. She _will_ become a powerful force to be reckoned with and I will not see it impeded by anyone in this village," said Sephiroth seeing Haku's eyes become cold and fierce now.

"All the more reason for me to kill her so she can't kill you!" said Haku in a cold voice filled with venom.

"_No!_ You will not. I forbid it," said Sephiroth seeing the protest in Haku's eyes.

"But why? She threatens your life with such potential and needs to be removed before she can achieve it!" said Haku looking him right in the eyes, begging her Master to give the order, and every muscle within ready to move to make it happen.

All she needed was the command from Sephiroth.

"Because I don't want Hinata to die. Just as I don't want _you_ to die Haku. Can I trust you not to usurp my decision?" said Sephiroth, as the swordsman felt Haku latch onto him, and hugging his body tightly.

"I would never go against your wishes Sephiroth-sama," said Haku, as she held onto him, breathing in his scent, and rested her head on his shoulder.

It still didn't stop her from crying over the matter.

"I know Haku. Do not worry. I have no intention of dying anytime soon," said Sephiroth, as he stroked the woman's long hair, and let her cry on his shoulder.

'I know you won't because _I_ won't let you,' thought Haku, as she wouldn't let anything stop Sephiroth from living, and Kami help anyone that stood in her way.

Because Haku was going to obliterate them from this world should they try.

(BBQ Restaurant-Several Days Later)

"This is troublesome," said Shikamaru, as he saw Choji eating his food happily, and saw Ino was eating a little bit more then usual now that the battle with Sakura in the Prelims had knocked some sense into her.

The Nara suspected it was also in a literal sense too.

Though in reality, Shikamaru wasn't really interested in Ino's revelation that watching her weight, and the latest look in fashion no longer taking priority over Shinobi training. It was the Prelim match that came last, which had his 200 IQ mind buzzing, and he wasn't the only one either.

"What do you think Sephiroth meant when he said Hinata had the potential to kill him? You think he meant it?" said Ino, as the statement that was heard by the One-Winged Angel had been spread throughout the Leaf, and many wondered if it was indeed true.

"Hard to say. When he was just Uzumaki Naruto, the guy was hard to figure out as it was, and now being Namikaze Sephiroth makes things all the more troublesome. I do know that since those words were spoken, the pressure Hinata faces in having the Cage Bird Seal placed on her head by the Hyuuga Clan has been lifted, and the Councils are now _helping_ the Hokage in keeping her as an apprentice," said Shikamaru, as he had spoken to his dad about it, and the Nara Clan Head had admitted as much in the meeting they had mere minutes after the Prelims were over.

"You think its what he planned all along? To get people to support Hinata?" said Choji before wolfing down more food.

"Maybe. Though the look in his eyes when he spoke tells me that Sephiroth believes Hinata does have the ability to kill him in the future...and wants her to have that ability," said Shikamaru seeing his teammates eyeing him with surprise.

"I never thought someone as powerful as Sephiroth would be suicidal," said Choji now frowning at the thought with Ino doing the same.

"Considering how people treated him here when he was Uzumaki Naruto, I wouldn't be that surprised, and suspect he wants to die at the hands of the only person our age that cared about him. In his mind, to die at the hands of the closest person he could actually call a loved one being a good thing, and would most likely prefer it," said Shikamaru in a depressed voice.

"Damn," said Choji, as his food no longer appealed to his stomach, and put the chicken in front of him down.

"Hey! Get out of here! We don't serve students of that monster!" said the Manager of the restaurant at the Sound Genin team that entered the establishment.

"Some things never change," said Shikamaru seeing the Sound Genin not budging from their spot while the Manager looked ready to pick up a butcher knife and use it.

"Was this what we ignored until now? Was this what Sephiroth went through when he was Uzumaki Naruto?" said Ino, as she saw the Manager's face go red with anger to albino white at the sight of the figure that entered behind his team, and now backing away in fear.

Namikaze Sephiroth.

"My students came here to eat because they are hungry. Surely, you wouldn't be foolish enough to deny _them_ something to eat like you did _me_ years ago, and cause a scene?" said Sephiroth seeing the Manager's body shaking in fear of him and quickly leading the four to a booth while the people around them whispered at the sight.

"Where is that masked girl that is always next to him?" said Ino whispering to Shikamaru since he didn't see her around.

"I don't know. Maybe he's giving her a day off," said Shikamaru, as he could see the four sitting down, and looking at menus.

"You want to go over and say hi? I mean...were not enemies right now," said Choji, as he saw Shikamaru run a hand through his hair, and once more thought about it.

"Later. Let them eat for now. We'll talk to them right before we leave," said Shikamaru seeing his teammates nodding in agreement while secretly eavesdropping in on their conversation.

"Now that I'm not in the Chuunin Exam Finals, I've been recalled back to Sound, and have to await further orders," said Kin sadly knowing that Orochimaru was going to use her for something.

Something bad.

"I know. I've spoken to him about it. I've convinced the leader of Sound to let you stay to help your teammates train and send over our albino friend for the Hokage to look at for possible treatment," said Sephiroth knowing Team 10 was hearing this, but didn't want them to know about the snake Sannin, and what was going to happen in a Month.

"You think the Hokage can heal him? I doubt she'll want to considering," said Dosu, as he knew from when Orochimaru spoke of his female former teammate that there was no real love between the two, and that Tsunade would sooner punch the snake Sannin's head clean off his body.

"Senju Tsunade's oath as a doctor will not let a sick person go untreated if there is still a possible treatment available and all four of us here have seen our dear friend getting sicker by the day," said Sephiroth, as he saw the trio nod, and had seen the signs of the Kaguya coughing more with several cases of blood leaving his mouth every time they saw him.

"When is he going to arrive?" said Zaku curiously.

"Tomorrow. He'll be staying at the Namikaze Estates for the duration of his stay here in Konoha when not being treated by Tsunade. Hopefully, the Hokage's new apprentice will help find out what's wrong with our friend, and help Tsunade cure him of his disease that much faster," said Sephiroth seeing the trio nod and went about eating their meal _after _the One-Winged Angel used his powers to purify it of any form of _unhealthy_ things possibly put in their meal.

"Hey!" said Shikamaru, as he walked up to them, and saw Sephiroth look at him calmly while his Genin were on edge.

"Yes?" said Sephiroth seeing Team 10 approach them.

"Its been awhile since the Academy," said Shikamaru while kicking himself for being so obvious.

"That it has. I see you three haven't changed much," said Sephiroth smiling at the Leaf Genin in front of him.

"Changing is troublesome," said Shikamaru simply.

"Indeed. How has your team been doing since the Preliminaries?" said Sephiroth, as he saw the Nara shrug, and made a wavy hand motion indicating it was so-so.

"Hayate-sensei gave us a few days off. I've practiced with a few clan Jutsu and I know Choji has been trying to use more of his family's own," said Shikamaru casually before he was hit in the back of the head by Ino.

"You forgot about me baka!" said Ino glaring at her teammate.

"Oh and Ino is doing...whatever it is Ino does," said Shikamaru getting another hit on the head for not making her sound important.

"You're not helping!" said Ino shaking her hand at him.

"Sephiroth-sensei, we've finished eating," said Dosu, as he saw Sephiroth look at him, and then the plates on the table.

"Good. Zaku. Dosu. Go train for the Exam Finals. Kin, I want you to see the Hokage, and inform her of the future patient I need to have examined. If she says no, then please tell my Godmother I have no problem paying for her time, and treatment of our dear friend arriving tomorrow," said Sephiroth, as he saw his three students nod, and head out before taking a look at the bill given moments later by the waitress.

"And don't come back demon filth!" said the waitress before turning to leave his presence quickly.

"This bill is outrageous! That's three times the correct amount of the price for the food here," said Ino seeing the bill handed to Sephiroth, who merely smiled, and put the bill down, and simply rose from his seat before leaving.

"You're not going to pay it are you?" said Shikamaru simply.

"Would you?" said Sephiroth with a raised eyebrow.

"No," said Shikamaru.

"If they start complaining, they can always send me the correct bill for the food, and _then_ I will pay it," said Sephiroth before walking out and ignored the smug waitress walking over to collect money off the table that wasn't there.

"That bastard! He didn't pay!" said the waitress, as she was going to report him to the Manager, and get him in trouble with the Hokage.

"Kind of hard to pay for a bill that is way beyond the normal price," said Shikamaru seeing the waitress glaring at him, but it didn't intimidate the Nara one bit, and held his ground.

"He's a demon! A monster! Things like him pay what we tell them to pay and they have to suck it up like the abominations they are," said the waitress not wanting to go into the reasons behind the Leaf's actions.

"Sephiroth thought differently when he decided not to pay for the meals. You can make a case out of it, but I doubt the Hokage will take your side on the matter, and ask Sephiroth to pay for something that was not priced properly," said Shikamaru, as he saw the woman sweat slightly at this, and knew the waitress was blowing smoke about reporting this.

"This isn't over!" said the waitress before storming off.

"You know what's scary about that statement? She's right _and_ not for the reason I know she's thinking about," said Shikamaru seeing his friends nod their heads in agreement.

It was not over. Not by a long shot.

(Namikaze Estates)

The moment Sephiroth entered his home, he was tackled by Haku, who had been tied up by a spell that kept her bound until his return, and glared at the One-Winged Angel for not letting her come with him. If she didn't care so much, Haku would have struck him, and then scolded Sephiroth on the purpose she had in protecting him.

"Why did you go outside without me?" said Haku finally seeing the swordsman merely smirked at her.

"Because you needed to rest and relax. I imagine things were never this tense with you when traveling with Zabuza," said Sephiroth seeing the woman shake her head no since it never was this tense for her.

Then again, Zabuza never went into one of the five major Shinobi villages during the Chuunin Exams, and walked around like nothing could hurt him.

"I understand," said Haku, as she had been tense since being here, and feared for Master being attacked at any second of the day.

Or night for that matter.

"Kimimaro is coming here tomorrow to receive medical assistance to combat his disease plaguing his body," said Sephiroth deciding to change the subject.

"Do you think she can cure him?" said Haku knowing this disease Kimimaro had was progressing at a dangerous rate.

"If she can't then I will with my healing spells. I don't want to give our friend a quick fix simply to have him become Orochimaru's new vessel," said Sephiroth knowing that was going to happen upon Kimimaro being cured and the swordsman couldn't let that happen.

(Root HQ)

"Are your men in position?" said Danzo, as he looked at the Root ANBU Captain in front of him kneeling submissively, and nodding his head that the men were.

"Yes Danzo-sama. All Root Shinobi have taken up key positions around the Namikaze Estates ready to strike on your order," said the Root ANBU Captain.

"Good. Tell them to proceed and attack tonight. If they can't capture the boy, then go for the girl, and bring her to me," said Danzo, as he would have his new weapon one way, or another with the means to overthrow the Hokage.

"Yes Danzo-sama," said the Root ANBU Captain before vanishing to do his duty.

'Soon, the One-Winged Angel of Death will be mine to command, to control, and then the Elemental Countries will fall in line once I unleash my new pet upon it,' thought Danzo, as he would relish using his new tool, and become an unstoppable force that no one could oppose.

(Namikaze Estates-That Night)

Sephiroth knew something was amiss when multiple chakra signatures were detected by himself and Haku soon after before they headed off to sleep. Each signature was mild at best, but such a vast army of them, it was clear their Master, whoever it was, preferred to use quantity over quality in terms of strength, and didn't really care that such people were sacrificed.

Nodding to Haku to get ready, Sephiroth walked out of his home, Masamune in his hand, and saw the loyal Root ANBU Captain with his own sword drawn along with the other Shinobi around him. Sephiroth knew there would be no talking like civilized people with this group, as this army was here for the single purpose of defeating, capturing, and/or killing him.

"You're trespassing. Leave or be destroyed," said Sephiroth deciding to give these fools _one_ small chance to run away.

"Surrender or be destroyed," said the Root ANBU Captain.

Shame they had to waste it.

"I choose neither option. _Die!_" said Sephiroth, as he was soon upon this army, moving through them smoothly, and the swarming army of Root Shinobi trying to subdue him.

Summoning water out of nowhere from his spell _Waterga_, the One-Winged Angel of Death covered the area around him with an incredible amount of water, and had nearly drowned the enemies around him in a flash flood. Those closest to him had actually died from such a thing from so much water in their lungs while others gagged for air after coughing up the water they had.

Above on the Namikaze Estates, Haku saw the quick nod by her Master, and instantly went through one handed hand signs before stomping her foot down hard to activate the Thousand Needles of Pain Jutsu that struck the Root Shinobi below. No surprisingly, some of the Root Shinobi didn't go down, as they had more tolerance to such pains, and tried going after Haku instead of the original target upon the remembrance of secondary orders by Danzo.

Haku immediately threw wave after wave of senbon needles at the Root Shinobi with her foes slowing or falling down completely before they got within close Taijutsu range. She easily knocked several back that got in her way before hitting another getting within that range with a senbon to his neck that dropped the Root Shinobi like a bad habit. Sensing someone behind her, Haku spun around, and punched the Root Shinobi so hard in the face that the man's mask cracked from the force behind it.

When the battle was over, Sephiroth was standing among the piles, and chunks of bodies around him with Masamune dripping blood down onto the ground thanks to the power of gravity. Above him, he saw Haku had defeated her own group of Root Shinobi, and had a live one to interrogate for information.

Throwing the man down on the ground before Sephiroth, Haku quickly hit the man with senbon needles so the Root Shinobi's limbs were immobile, and then walked over to her Master's side. Kicking the man over, Sephiroth walked around the man, and saw the Root Shinobi looking back with a blank look on his face.

"You will tell me who sent you. You will tell me your Master's name," said Sephiroth simply, but his voice was cold, deadly, and spoke of intense pain beyond measure if he was denied answers.

The Root Shinobi however, did not speak due to the seal on his tongue, and did not bode well in the presence of the angry figure that was Namikaze Sephiroth. You see, Sephiroth was one of two different types of angry people see in the world, and try to avoid at all costs. The first type of anger is explosive anger, which causes people to lash out at people in brief moments before calming down, and then acting happy once the anger is faded. Then you have the second type of anger, which is suppressed kind someone buries down deep inside themselves for days, Months, and even _years_ before all that anger comes out in a form that _no one_ wants to be in the path of when it comes out.

Sephiroth was the latter of the two and he had plenty of pent up anger in him regarding Konoha that spanned well over a full decade.

In short, the Root Shinobi was screwed, and it was all Danzo's fault with that seal.

(Konoha Hospital-The Next Day)

Tsunade looked at the figure wearing thick robes to cover his person no doubt to keep his appearance from people when he made his way here and saw Sephiroth watching things from the corner of the room. Slowly, the figure removed the robes to reveal himself to be Kaguya Kimimaro, and loyal bodyguard of Orochimaru.

Though Sephiroth was going to see the man's loyalties to the Sannin did not last.

"A real live Kaguya in the flesh standing before me. If I had made a bet years ago after the clan was wiped out saying none were left with that bloodline I would have lost," said Tsunade, as she stood with Hinata beside her trying to be professional, but it was hard for the Hyuuga to do in the presence of Sephiroth, and yet still kept trying to focus on the task at hand.

"Sephiroth-sama has told me that your knowledge as a medic may have the power to cure my body," said Kimimaro seeing the woman nod and turned to Hinata before nodding.

"Byakugan!" said Hinata, as she used her eyes, and saw the internal organs of Kimimaro.

"What do you see Hinata?" said Tsunade, as she wanted her apprentice inside on this, and the Byakugan was a great asset in seeing what normally couldn't be seen.

"Its his lungs. Kimimaro-san's lungs are showing signs of damage with scarring and are being damaged on a microscopic level," said Hinata, as she saw the disease at work, and it was quite the sight to see.

"Tuberculosis," said Tsunade simply, as she had a list of the symptoms Sephiroth had given about his friend, and seeing where the Kaguya Clan came from it made perfect sense.

"That disease...it has been the bane of my clan's existence since it was founded. It attacks only the most powerful of the Kaguya and I just so happen to be that person when I was just a child," said Kimimaro remembering how his own family feared his potential and locked him away in dark moist cell when he was a child.

"Can he be cured?" said Sephiroth seeing Tsunade running a Diagnostic Jutsu over the Kaguya's chest and do her own assessment of the man.

"Maybe. In a few Months such treatment would be impossible given the current rate of this disease in his body. If we are to have a remote chance of success, I need to start my regime for treatment now, and not a day later," said Tsunade looking at Sephiroth seeing him nod.

"Make the arrangements. I'll also need all your medical notes, procedures, and anything else for treating Kimimaro's disease for Haku to have when we continue his treatment outside of the village after the Chuunin Exams are over," said Sephiroth seeing the busty blonde nodding.

"I'll prepare a room for him. Come Hinata!" said Tsunade, as she saw Hinata looking at Sephiroth for a moment, and then followed out of the room.

Seconds later, Haku appeared via ice mirror, and saw Kimimaro move to sit down on a nearby chair.

"To think, _I_ Kaguya Kimimaro of the Kaguya Clan, its strongest member to have been produced in ages could possibly be destroyed by something small, and the naked eye could not see! Thank you for convincing Orochimaru-sama into letting me come here Sephiroth-sama," said Kimimaro bowing his head slightly in the swordsman's direction.

"Don't thank me yet Kimimaro-san. There is a price to be paid for such a treatment and it maybe too steep for you if asked to pay it," said Sephiroth seeing Kimimaro frown in confusion.

"What price?" said Kimimaro seeing Haku looking uneasy since she knew this could blow up in their faces.

"We wish you to denounce Orochimaru and to no longer serve him," said Sephiroth seeing Kimimaro's eyes widen and then narrow in anger.

"How can you ask me that? It is because of Orochimaru-sama that I have a purpose!" said Kimimaro, as he saw Sephiroth shake his head, and walk towards him.

"A purpose that will end the moment you are healed. Orochimaru will make you his new vessel, destroying your soul while his takes over your body, and then in the three years time...he will take a new body without so much as a look back at the one person out of all the Elemental Countries willing to give up their life for him. The man has no honor. The snake Sannin is a parasite, who feeds off others because he fears death, and the judgment that awaits him on the other side," said Sephiroth seeing the albino Kaguya growling at him in denial.

"You lie! It is through this Curse Seal that a part of me will stay alive with Orochimaru forever!" said Kimimaro, as he was moments away from unleashing his fury, and the only thing stopping him was the fact it would ruin Orochimaru's plans.

"Is that what he told you? Because if it is, then what Orochimaru told you was a lie, and a deceitful one at that," said Sephiroth seeing Kimimaro's eyes wavering a little under his own stare.

"H-He wouldn't! I have proven myself time and time again that my loyalty was his and he promised me," said Kimimaro seeing Sephiroth's eyes narrow in anger at the albino's words.

Not angry over Kimimaro saying the words, but the fact Orochimaru _promised_ that he had claimed the lie was true, and played on the Kaguya's insecurities at the time.

"It was a promise he couldn't keep. In fact, it was because me, and not Orochimaru that your body can possibly be cured of its disease. The Sannin you've served for awhile now had refused to take you to see Tsunade when she was wandering around the Elemental Countries because of his pride? He would have sooner bleed your body and loyalty dry, then have her heal you if it wasn't for my way with words, and lying when I explained that he could use you for his new body right away after being cured," said Sephiroth seeing the man in front of him shaking his head before falling to his knees whispering that it was all lies.

"He speaks the truth Kimimaro-san. Sephiroth-sama would not lie to you like this. That is not his way," said Haku seeing Kimimaro shaking almost violently now before he just stopped and looked up at the One-Winged Angel of Death with serious deadly eyes.

"The price you are asking me is indeed steep," said Kimimaro plainly.

"I know, but the alternative is not something a warrior of your status should have to go through, and in all honesty Kimimaro-san...you deserve better," said Sephiroth seeing the albino slowly bow his head until it touched the ground.

"I renounce my loyalty to Orochimaru. My life...is now _yours_ to command...Sephiroth-sama," said Kimimaro, as he looked up at Sephiroth, and saw the command to stand up.

"You won't regret this Kimimaro. Haku, I need you do take a look at the library, and look at some medical scrolls to expand your knowledge in healing. I have a feeling we will need all your skills in the future long after Kimimaro is healed," said Sephiroth seeing the girl nod in understanding.

"There is something else you need to know about Orochimaru's invasion plans for the Leaf and it involves the Kazekage of Suna. Or rather..._him_ being the Kazekage of Suna," said Kimimaro seeing Sephiroth's eyes narrow slightly.

"Tell me everything. Leave no detail out," said Sephiroth seeing Kimimaro nod and begin the explanation of the plan to invade Konoha.

(Chuunin Exam Finals-One Month Later)

Orochimaru walked up to the Hokage Booth under the disguise of the Kazekage, who he was now impersonating to get close to his former teammate, and now the first female Hokage. Things had not gone _exactly_ as planned for his invasion of the Leaf, as he had expected Sasuke to be strong enough to advance this far, and leave him open during the invasion to grab to take back to Sound. Second, Kimimaro's treatments in secret for his lung disease by Tsunade had required the albino stay the whole Month, and even then it required that the Kaguya stay until the day of the Chuunin Exam Finals before he was ready to leave for Sound. Another problem was the increase of security around the Leaf after the fool Danzo sent an army of his Root agents to subdue Sephiroth and ruthlessly slaughtered by the swordsman. It was unknown if Sephiroth got any information about Danzo from the Root Shinobi brought before him alive, but the end result brought about increased security, and a tighter leash on all the Council members including the snake Sannin's secret partner in crime.

'The stupid old man was too eager to subdue Sephiroth using the tools _I_ gave him from the different experiments carried out in my lab. Now Tsunade has made things even more difficult to get information from my spies and move my forces into position. I'll deal with Danzo soon enough after I crush Tsunade when the invasion is over,' thought Orochimaru before putting on the façade of the Kazekage now greeting the Fifth Hokage.

"Welcome Kazekage-sama. How was your trip here?" said Tsunade smiling at the cloth covered face of the fake Kazekage.

"It was pleasant. You never truly realize how hot the weather around Suna is until you've been outside the village," said Orochimaru while pretending to be happy in front of his old teammate.

"Agreed. Though I'm sure you are excited about seeing all three of your children in these exams," said Tsunade seeing the "Kazekage" nodding in agreement.

"Yes. My eldest Temari, my oldest son Kankuro, and youngest son Gaara brought me great joy when I was informed by their sensei of their accomplishments. I hope to see all three of them advance to Chuunin soon and then to Jounin shortly after that," said the fake Kazekage not knowing that Tsunade had caught onto him since the Fifth Hokage knew that the _real_ Kazekage _never_ called Gaara his son.

'So you are Orochimaru in disguise. Well, it's a good thing I've prepared for this thanks to your former loyal subordinate Kimimaro, and the details behind the invasion,' thought Tsunade, as she had recalled Jiraiya back to the Chuunin Exams after putting in a coded message stating the snake was in the sand, and preparing to strike the Tree Slug in the Oasis.

Hopefully, Jiraiya would keep taking down Sephiroth on hold for now, and deal with Orochimaru's invasion.

"Who is fighting first?" said the "Kazekage", as he sat down in his chair, and awaited the matches to start.

"See for yourself," said Tsunade, as they both saw Sai getting ready to fight Akado Yoroi in his match, and saw the eyes of the fake Kazekage looked instantly bored.

"I suppose its only appropriate if not fair the host village gets to have two of their Shinobi fight first," said Orochimaru trying to sound like this was fine when in actuality it wasn't.

And so the two watched the match with Sai using his ink drawings to battle Yoroi, who was trying to get close enough to drain the pale boy's chakra, but was unable to get close due to the ink drawings that were in the form of fierce flesh ripping animals that did a good job of imitating their real flesh, and blood counterparts that lived in the wild.

Needless to say, Sai was the victor of his match, and started things off in a very bloody fashion.

The next match came and it was Abumi Zaku VS Sabaku no Kankuro with the middle child of the Sabaku family forfeiting his match in order to save his puppets for when the invasion started. The next match that soon followed was Nara Shikamaru VS Sabaku no Temari with the lazy Leaf Genin preparing to forfeit since he didn't want to face a girl for a second time had Dosu not secretly pushed the boy over the railing into the arena on the orders of Sephiroth with the One-Winged Angel knowing the Nara would sooner forfeit his match then fight the Suna girl. This was soon followed by Temari getting inpatient at the Nara's lazy behavior and attacking the boy before the proctor could announce the start of the match.

Given Shikamaru's luck with women, namely his own Mother, and Ino on his team...he didn't really stand much of a chance against Temari. The blonde pig tailed woman was almost as smart as him, more powerful then he was, _and_ there was no real way for him to manipulate his Shadow Possession Jutsu to take the eldest of the Kazekage's children down.

What was even more scary was Shikamaru suspected it was the _youngest_ of the three siblings, who was the _strongest_ of them, and the Nara didn't want to face him during the Chuunin Exam Finals.

So it wasn't a really big surprise that Temari not only dominated the match from the start, but that Shikamaru forfeited, and just before woman brought down her iron fan on top of his head that stopped mere inches from it.

"Wimp!" said Temari before walking away and hearing the crowd booing at the outcome of the fights so far.

The Leaf had won against one of its own via kill, Sound won against Suna via forfeit, and now Suna won against the Leaf in the same manner.

Next came Kinuta Dosu, who was facing Sabaku no Gaara, but the Sound Genin had been secretly ordered by Sephiroth not to fight the demon vessel, and Dosu forfeited his own match. Of course, it made the people watching get upset, but those that knew of Gaara's reputation understood why Dosu didn't fight, and that the Sound Genin was playing it safe.

"Why is everyone forfeiting their matches? Don't they have any pride in being Shinobi? Are they all _that_ weak!" said Sasuke his voice filled with anger at the act the Leaf wasn't showing off its potential and that he wasn't down there to make it happen.

"Now calm down Sasuke. From what I understand, Gaara severely brutalized Lee in his Preliminary match a Month ago, and I'm sure Dosu doesn't want to have his own body nearly destroyed. After all, Sound doesn't have someone of Tsunade's caliber to heal their injured, and a minor village values their Shinobi due to so few of them," said Kakashi next to his student and then looked over at Sephiroth not that far away currently sitting with Haku along with a robed figure sitting next to them.

After Lee's battle with Gaara, the mini Gai clone had been told by the Hokage he would never be a Shinobi again due to his injuries, and that the damage was too extensive for even her medical skills to heal. The opening of the Chakra Gates, the brutality of Gaara's manipulation of the sand, and the seemingly bloodthirsty nature that transpired during the match had crippled the Leaf Genin beyond repair.

At least, that was what people were told until Sephiroth came to pay the Leaf Shinobi a visit like a Godlike figure or the preverbal Devil coming to make a deal in exchange for one's soul. No one knew what was spoken between them, as Sephiroth had made Lee promise not to reveal what was said on his honor, and soon after the Leaf Genin found himself completely healed by the swordsman's hands. Lee himself didn't know what Sephiroth did to heal his injuries due to the One-Winged Angel putting him to sleep before healing the broken body.

It was also rumored that Sabaku no Gaara had also encountered Sephiroth near Lee's room, but that moment was much shorter, and had left the Kazekage's youngest child somewhat shaken.

Though what caused it, again no one knew the reason, and rumors spread like wildfire.

"What about that one Suna Shinobi? Surely that one sibling of the Kazekage could have taken on the one from Sound rather then forfeit. Something about this is very wrong here Kakashi," said Kurenai a row above them watching from the stands before glancing over at Sephiroth with narrowed eyes.

'She has a point. A Shinobi like that puppet user should be more then a match for that one from Sound even if Sephiroth was the boy's sensei. Puppet users are known to have more then one puppet at their disposal and I'm sure the son of the Kazekage has quite a few of them to take down his opponent. So why forfeit?' thought Kakashi, as he narrowed his own eye at Sephiroth, and saw the swordsman looking down at the arena with his usual calmness that was constantly unreadable.

"You think Sephiroth is up to something Kakashi-sensei?" said Sakura, as she saw her Jounin sensei look at Sephiroth, and had that serious thinking pose on his masked face.

"Maybe. Stay on guard," said Kakashi, as he turned to the next match, which he sensed made Kurenai nervous, and for good reason too.

Hyuuga Hinata was now fighting Sabaku no Gaara.

'That's why Dosu forfeit! Sephiroth told him to so Gaara would fight Hinata in the next round since she was to face the winner!' thought Kurenai, as she glared at Sephiroth, who was now showing a smirk on his face, and it was taking considerable willpower not to go over to him before punching his lights out.

"This is bad. If Gaara is anything like he was a Month ago, Hinata doesn't stand a chance against him, and he'll rip her apart," said Kiba with Akamaru barking in agreement while Shino watched silently though his bugs buzzed noticeably around him.

"Neji?" said Tenten looking at her teammate looking at the matchup carefully.

"I do not know if Hinata-sama can win Tenten. She had been studying relentlessly with Tsunade-sama, but one Month worth of preparation may not be enough, and Sabaku no Gaara is not one to show mercy to his opponents," said Neji fearing for his cousin and saw Lee nod his head in agreement.

"Nevertheless, if Sephiroth-sama believes in your cousin Neji, then we must have faith that such a belief had merit, and trust her to prevail where others could not," said Lee seeing his teammates and even sensei look at him in surprise at referring to Sephiroth with such respect.

"Why are you referring to him with such respect Lee?" said Tenten seeing Lee looking at the match with his well trained eyes.

"Because Tenten, I wouldn't be here, as an active Genin of the Leaf if it wasn't for him, and he had earned my respect for doing something he didn't have to from the start. After my battle was over, I remembered him clapping in the balcony above me, and applauding us both for showing our skills in being Shinobi before I became unconscious," said Lee seeing Gaara now unleashing his sand upon Hinata with the young Hyuuga girl moving around with flexible grace her clan was never known for while trying not to get caught in the tendrils of sand that wished to devour her.

Hinata knew from the start what Gaara's sand could do, as she had witnessed its brutality under his command, and how it killed others in terrifying ways like she saw him do in the Forest of Death with the Ame Genin team. Even if she got close enough to his him, the Hyuuga Heiress wasn't an foolish enough to believe her Gentle Fist Taijutsu could pierce through the thick layer of sand he'd throw up to defend himself, or the layer of sand that Gaara wore over his own skin like body armor. Even the Kaiten was out of the question if she could perform it, as Hinata knew the ending of the spin would leave her temporarily vulnerable, and Gaara preyed on such things during battle.

_If_ Hinata had a remote chance of beating Gaara much less _surviving_ this matchup with him, she knew the only way was to use the skills Tsunade taught her, and quickly before the tendrils of sand became a wave that consumed everything in its grasp. Leaping back a safe distance, Hinata slammed her fist down onto the ground, causing the area around her to shake violently, and surprising everyone that she learned Tsunade's Super Strength technique so soon in a Month's time.

As the ground shook, Sabaku no Gaara found himself finding it hard to stay standing due to the unstable ground his opponent had created, and a fissure produced from the quake heading his way. Leaping away from the fissure now moving past him, Gaara was soon surprised again when Hinata used the skill to make large chunks of rock to jump in front of her before kicking them hard towards the surprised son of the Kazekage. The sand of course came up, shielding the red haired boy from Suna of the smaller rocks sent his way, but could do little to stop the one mass of stone Hinata shot towards him that was roughly his size in height with the same width of his body plus the gourd holding the sand.

The massive projectile hit Gaara right in the head with sand skin armor, which was his last line of defense being the only thing preventing the boy from having a major head trauma aside from a small concussion. The sand skin armor cracked from the impact of the massive rock, which shocked the Suna siblings, and their sensei since only Rock Lee had been able to do such a thing before Gaara nearly killed him.

Seeing her chance to weaken the seemingly invincible boy from Suna, Hinata continued the assault, using her damn near perfect chakra control to create more projectiles, and then shoot them at the stunned Sabaku. She didn't relent either, as Hinata shot wave after wave, and shot after shot until not even Gaara's sand could be focused to stop them all.

"She's doing remarkably well Sephiroth-sama," said the robe covered figure beside the swordsman.

"As I knew she would given her teacher," said Sephiroth smiling at Hinata and seeing the power he knew was always there.

Haku saw it too, but unlike Sephiroth, she did not smile, and instead frowned behind her mask while thinking up ways to counter such skills should the need arise to _remove_ this threat to Sephiroth-sama. She had heard his command to not kill the Hyuuga Heiress, which Haku would honor to the end of her days, _but_ there was absolutely _nothing_ from stopping the female ice user from coming up with a means to protect Sephiroth-sama from such a powerful threat, and figuring out how to neutralize it, right? No! Haku would do her duty while skating along the edge of not disobeying her Master and simply find a way to keep the Hyuuga girl from _ever_ using such skills against Sephiroth-sama.

Simple right?

Right!

"Sephiroth-sama, it's almost time for Kabuto to make his move," said the robed figure, as he sensed Kabuto's chakra signature, and preparing the Jutsu to knock everyone out.

"You know what to do Kimimaro, but remember not to overexert yourself, and do not toy with your prey," said Sephiroth seeing his robed figure that was the albino Kaguya nod in agreement before silently heading out.

'Where is _he_ going?' thought Hayate before coughing at the sight of the white haired man next to Sephiroth get out of his seat and walking away.

The idea of leaving his students to continue surveillance on the robed figure was tempting at the moment, but Hayate decided not to since his students would no doubt get involved, and they may put themselves in a position beyond their pay grade. For now, he would let the secretly roaming ANBU do their job, and trust in his love Yugao along with her team to take care of things.

A scream of unimaginable pain echoed throughout the arena, which broke Hayate from his thoughts, as he looked down to see Gaara holding the side of his head before looking down at his palm, and saw _his_ blood on it. _His_ blood! Not Hinata's. Not Lee's. And not some stupid Shinobi assassin his Father sent to kill him shortly after turning six years old.

"MY BLOOD! YOU MADE ME BLEED! NOW YOU _**DIE!**_" yelled Gaara, as he was done playing games with this girl, and formed a circular ball of sand over his body with a single eye materializing to look around while he was inside it.

"This is bad. He's going to use _that_ now?" said Kankuro worriedly since that was not part of the plan.

"Doesn't matter. Its already starting," said Temari seeing the feather's descend from the sky and the people falling asleep in the stands.

The invasion of the Leaf had started.

An explosion in the Kage's Booth had alerted the Shinobi not under the Genjutsu's power began to fight off Suna and Sound Shinobi around them. Surprisingly enough, Sephiroth of all people was striking down all three that stood in his path, and so was Haku since it was now time to cast aside such loyalties to Sound village. From where he was currently standing, Sephiroth could see the Sound Four get into position around Tsunade, and the now revealed Orochimaru knowing they were moments away from putting up the barrier Kimimaro told him was going to be used.

"Time to intervene on my Godmother's behalf," said Sephiroth, as he grabbed Haku by the waist, and vanished from the sight of those around him only to appear in-between the two former teammates mere seconds before the barrier came up.

"What are you doing here Sephiroth? You were suppose to go find Jiraiya and kill him!" said Orochimaru seeing the young swordsman look at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh, I will Orochimaru-san, but you seem to be mistaken me for one of your submissive subordinates, and misunderstood my agreement to hunt down Jiraiya being a mission I would carry out on _my terms_. Not yours," said Sephiroth, as he saw the Sannin glaring at him, and pulled out Kusanagi from his mouth to his hands.

He _could_ have the Sound Four lower the barrier, but by now an ANBU squad had arrived to attack the moment the barrier was down, and Orochimaru knew this could be the only time presented to him to kill his former teammate. Besides, it wasn't the snake Sannin didn't have an ace of his own up his sleeve, as there was this _one_ summoning Jutsu he had been working on to give him a solid edge over opponents rivaling his own strength, and he had something in mind for Sephiroth that went perfectly for his fight against Tsunade.

"I won't go down without a fight and I will have my revenge. 'Summoning: Impure World Resurrection!'" said Orochimaru, as he went through the hand signs, and summoned three coffins to rise from the ground while mentally patting himself on the backup plan to use those three Fuma Clan members to be his sacrifices for this Jutsu since Kin was nowhere to be found while the other two Genin had advanced to the Chuunin Exam Finals.

"We need to stop the coffins from rising," said Tsunade, as she made the necessary hand sign to negate one of the three coffins while Haku mimicked it to stop the second coffin, but the last one rose without opposition, and then the lid soon fell to reveal the person inside of it, and made the two of three pair of eyes watching the figure widen in surprise at the sight of him.

It was the Yondaime Hokage in all his glory.

"Interesting," said Sephiroth seeing his Father step out of the coffin and look back at him with an indifferent look on his face.

Haku fell to one knee, as the chakra used for the Jutsu she along with Tsunade did to stop the majority of the coffins had been taxing on her body, and looked at Sephiroth to see him take a few steps forward to indicate this battle was his alone. Haku knew this the moment she saw the Yondaime come out of the coffin, as the battle between Father, and son was something long overdo even if it was never meant to happen.

"So you became what the prophecy stated. My plan to stop it failed," said the Yondaime seeing Sephiroth before him and did not look pleased.

"It was going to happen whether you tried to stop it or not. All you did was give me a reason to become what you and everyone else feared in regards to the prophecy. The piece of your soul inside of me, as a failsafe learned that the hard way after Kyuubi tore you to shreds, and he was most thankful to have his revenge. Now...I will have mine," said Sephiroth seeing the Yondaime scowl further not understanding for a second before the realization hit him.

"I see. Then I will just have to do what I didn't have the courage to ask Jiraiya or even the Sandaime do before and kill you _myself_," said Yondaime seeing Sephiroth smirking at him.

"You will try and you will _fail_!" said Sephiroth with his power swirling around him like a storm and the killer intent coming off his body was nearly bone crushing.

"Enough talk! Kill him!" said Orochimaru, as he put the tag into the Yondaime's skull, and the man's body returned to its normal healthy self.

"Tsunade, I will leave Orochimaru's demise in your capable hands," said Sephiroth, as he sensed his busty Godmother nod, and charge towards her former teammate while leaving the returned Yondaime Hokage to him.

"The family ties that bind us together will finally be severed today my monster of a son," said Minato simply.

"There are no ties between us. There never was," said Sephiroth seeing his Father bring out his sword and the two rushed the other with their swords clashing.

"Isn't it wonder to see such family disunity Tsunade-chan? The chaos manifesting itself thanks to my genius and the Leaf's past arrogance?," said Orochimaru grinning wickedly at Tsunade.

"And what of us teme? What do you hope to accomplish by fighting me?" said Tsunade, as she saw him grinning wider, and hated the sight of that smile.

"Why the epic battle between good and evil! Of the Saint VS the Sinner. Of course being the serious one of our old team, you never did learn to have any fun, and go along with things Tsunade-chan," said Orochimaru seeing the woman scowl at him.

"I'll show you fun when I knock your head clean off your shoulders!" said Tsunade, as she rushed forward at her former teammate, ready to knock him into his own barrier, and into next week.

Not that far away, Sephiroth was in a sword battle with his own Father, who being the ever infamous Namikaze he was, had been able to hold his own against his son, and was doing all within his power to take younger Namikaze's head clean off. Sephiroth in turn was doing the same knowing that his dear _Father_ wasn't going to be easy to kill like the Sandaime was since the old man tried reason during the last moments of his life and did not have the strength the Yondaime did to push the One-Winged Angel of Death back.

"Before we continue this blood feud any further, I wish ask you one simple question about your parentage, and if you feel offended then by all means please let me know," said Sephiroth, as Masamune sparked against Minato's unnamed sword, and saw his Father's looking at him with narrowed eyes.

"What's the question? Speak before I slay you," said Minato, as they broke apart, then clashed again with clashing blades, and shook the ground around them.

"Did you know Jiraiya of the Sannin was your Father?" said Sephiroth seeing the wide eyed look of his Father and knew the answer to his question.

It was no.

"It doesn't matter," said Minato, as he saw Sephiroth smirking, and then push the man back before gliding back in a retreating manner.

"It doesn't matter? Did you know your so called Father secretly kept an eye on you just in case it was _you_, who was the child of prophecy, and planned to take your life in the event it was true?" said Sephiroth seeing Minato frowning further for a second in disbelief.

"That...cannot be right," said Minato, as he was confused, but _why_ was he confused, and why did it hurt him so that Jiraiya would have such plans in effect.

What Minato, the one currently standing before Sephiroth didn't realize, was that mere thought of possible betrayal by his bastard Father of a sensei had effected his mind, and the seals on the tag in his skull further influenced his mind. They seemed to prevent the rational part of the Yondaime Hokage from seeing what he would have normally saw from his own point of view, which seemed less likely now due to the fact a portion of his soul that was once in his son being destroyed, and further making the man see things in a way that he normally wouldn't in the past.

Just because the piece of Minato's soul that was once in Sephiroth body was gone, did _not_ mean the link between the two was severed, and had in fact had unexpectedly caused the younger Namikaze's feelings on the matter to be pushed into his sire's mind to be felt. To be understood by the Father on what the son went through with such betrayal and that such things were unfair in its entirety.

"So now do you see? Now do you understand what I feel in my heart? What you did to me out of your own fears? You were, in some strange way just like me, and the betrayal of someone you trusted without question. You were watched just like I was. Kept an eye on with someone in the shadows lurking to take your life should you be what they now know _I_ am. It hurts doesn't it?" said Sephiroth seeing his Father frowning, the tag in his mind fighting him for control to obey Orochimaru's commands, and fighting some other entity within the older Namikaze.

The Shinigami that was summoned that night over a decade ago appeared above nine of them. Tsunade, Orochimaru, Sephiroth, the Yondaime, Haku, and the Sound Four looked up seeing the only being capable of sealing up the Kyuubi within another.

_**"Who dares try to manipulate the soul that I devoured 13 years ago? A soul only **__**I**__** am allowed to command!"**_ said the clearly pissed off Shinigami.

"He does," said Sephiroth calmly, as he pointed to Orochimaru looking up fearfully at the Death God, and backing away in fright.

_**"**__**You**__**? I have had enough of your meddling in my affairs you filthy snake! It is high time that you faced your long overdue and forestalled judgment at my own hands!"**_ said the Shinigami, as he had ignored Orochimaru until now was because the rules in placed by all the other Gods in the whole stinking Universe prevented him for doing something, and only by the Sannin's meddling in using one the souls _he_ owned could the Death God interfere.

"No! I won't let you. Stay back! Back!" said Orochimaru, as he swung his sword wildly at the angry Death God, and it only seemed to make the Shinigami angrier.

Not the wisest thing to do.

Within moments, the Death God was upon Orochimaru, and ripped out the Sannin's soul with such cruel force that you could _hear_ the tearing sound made from the body. Those around the Shinigami watched Orochimaru's soul get devoured, hearing the sounds of the demonic figure munching on his soul based meal with relish, and then turn towards the two members of the Namikaze Clan.

Haku seeing this quickly moved in front of the Shinigami with her back to Sephiroth ready to protect her Master even from the Death God himself. However, what surprised everyone around her was the Shinigami laughed at Haku's actions, and almost had a _gentle_ look on his face, and was now staring him right in the eyes.

_**"It is not your time yet young one. As much as I would like to take **__**your**__** soul right now, the Fates tell me no, and to applaud you for your courage. Watching over **__**him**__** is your duty and not even **__**I**__** will tempt my hand in stopping your purpose in life my dear. As for **__**you**__** Yondaime Hokage, I know what caused the prophecy regarding the One-Winged Angel's return was partially **__**your**__** fault, and the fault of several others. I am going to enjoy **__**punishing**__** you for your arrogance and stupidity that led to his return!"**_ said the Shinigami grinning at his whimpering property before the man's body began to decay.

By this point, the Sound Four at lowered the barrier, and saw Sephiroth stare at his now repentant looking Father giving the son a weak smile that clearly told the younger of the two Namikaze that the man was sorry for his past actions. Not long after seeing the body of the Yondaime Hokage turn to ash, did Kimimaro appear, kneeling before Sephiroth, and reporting that Kabuto had been eliminated.

"Suna's forces are also pulling back upon learning Orochimaru's hand in the Kazekage's death while Dosu, Zaku, and Kin are out of the village heading for the rendezvous point. Gaara was not pleased by this, but I did as you instructed, and quickly reminded him not to provoke you into unleashing your anger," said Kimimaro, as it stopped Gaara from unleashing his one-tailed demon out on Konoha, and causing unnecessary damage.

"Kimimaro? What are you doing? Did you help betray Orochimaru-sama?" said Jirobo, as he saw Kimimaro glaring at the large man, and made him flinch.

"Orochimaru betrayed _me_! Sephiroth-sama brought me to the Hokage to heal my body of the disease that plagued it while Orochimaru kept me from such a person out of his own selfish pride. My loyalty is to the One-Winged Angel," said Kimimaro, as he watched the other members of the Sound Four look at Sephiroth cautiously, and now wondering what would happen to them since Orochimaru was no longer among the living.

Before any real thought could be put into the idea of what their purpose was now, a figure moved at blinding speed towards Sephiroth, and before either of his loyal "bodyguards" could stop the figure that was Jiraiya of the Sannin...he struck surprised swordsman in the chest with a glowing right hand. Jiraiya then went through one handed hand signs and was nearly complete with his Sealing Jutsu he had prepared for his Grandson when Haku snapped out of her shock before stabbing the free hand with senbon needles to stop what it was the Toad Sannin was doing. Kimimaro quickly struck Jiraiya in the face with a spin kick to disconnect the man from his Master and caught the swordsman now gasping in pain at what the Sannin did to him.

'Damn! The poison induced sealing I hit Sephiroth with is incomplete. Considering how many hand signs I went through, he must have got..._60_ _percent_ of the dosage in the seal, and can recover if given enough time,' thought Jiraiya, as he moved to attack again, but surprisingly Tsunade now stood in his path, and she punched him right in the face with a pissed off look that she hadn't sported since the time he was caught peeping on her in the hot springs.

"Sephiroth-sama!" said Haku, as she looked at his pained face, and at the warped seal that she could tell was hurting his body.

"H-Haku. I feel...weak. Cold," said Sephiroth, as he felt his body was suffering, and was losing strength fast!

"We need to get you out of here," said Haku, as she along with Kimimaro holding onto him, but were soon surrounded by ANBU, and other Leaf Shinobi with weapons drawn.

"Namikaze Sephiroth, you are under arrest for the murder of the Sandaime Hokage, and will surrender for the impending trial in front of the Fire Daimyo himself," said Kakashi among his fellow ANBU while getting ready to summon his Rakiri should it be required to take Sephiroth down.

"Earth Style Barrier: Earth Dome Prison!" said Jirobo in a sudden unexpected move that trapped it's the Leaf Shinobi.

"What the fuck are you doing fatso?" said Tayuya seeing big guy using that Jutsu.

"Picking a side Tayuya. Besides, we can't stay here in the Leaf. They will crucify us just for being Orochimaru's bodyguards, and torture us for information!" said Jirobo, as he saw Kimimaro help Haku carry Sephiroth away to the edge of stadium roof, and prepare to leap away.

"He's got a point! I don't know about you guys, but I value my freedom, and I'm not about to be locked up by these guys," said Kidomaru, as saw the Leaf Shinobi _not_ caught in the dome now trying to stop Sephiroth from escaping, and shot sticky gold webbing from his mouth to impede the Leaf Shinobi further.

"Great! Just fucking great! We go from serving the Uchiha loving pedophile to this crazy cocksucker!" said Tayuya, as she along with the others quickly joined the two escaping with Sephiroth, and heard the weakened swordsman whisper for them to follow him to Wave Country since Shinobi don't normally go there.

"He's getting away!" said a Jounin from the Inuzuka Clan.

"It doesn't matter. Securing the village does. Lock the village down now!" said Tsunade, as she saw them nod, and then disperse before turning to face an angry Jiraiya now in her face.

"You just made a _big_ mistake Tsunade. In his weakened condition, I could have subdued Sephiroth, and the other two before the others got involved," said Jiraiya, as his red angry face was now covering up most of the bruise on his face, and made it seem like the injury wasn't as bad as it looked.

"I don't care. Report what I did to the Fire Daimyo. Remove me from being Hokage and effectively weaken the Leaf further. I. don't. _care_!" said Tsunade, as she left a shocked Jiraiya looking back at her, and went to speak with Shizune along with Hinata

They needed to have a serious talk.

(A/N: YAY! I updated. I'm sure you're pretty freaked out now that Sephiroth is in trouble thanks to Jiraiya and that stupid seal he tried to put on him. Until next time...PEACE!)


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8-Road to Recovery

The group quickly made it to Wave Country where the former Sound Genin team of Kin, Dosu, and Zaku had only recently arrived at with the location showing a house on the far side of town that had seen better days. Quickly getting inside, Haku with Kimimaro got Sephiroth to the couch in the living room, and saw the seal on his chest near his heart was still active in pumping poison into his body. Whatever this was, it was clear Jiraiya had designed this seal _specifically_ for taking Sephiroth down, and painfully at that should the opportunity present itself.

"Sephiroth-sama," said Haku seeing her Master's eyes now half closed and struggling to breathe and was struggling to stay conscious.

"Do not worry Haku. I will recover from this. I just need...time," said Sephiroth, as he began coughing horribly for a second, and blood came out of his mouth in the color of a shadowy black instead of the expected crimson.

"Time we may not have Sephiroth-sama," said Kimimaro with concern knowing there was a chance they could be tracked here by a highly skilled tracking unit from Konoha.

"Kimimaro is right. No doubt Konoha will send several ANBU teams to hunt you down and in your condition...," said Haku cleaning the blood from his mouth before seeing him smile at her gently with kind eyes.

"I would be killed or captured. That's why I have you Haku. I need your help now to heal what you can. Kimimaro, I need you to find out where the Sound Four's loyalties now rest, and see if they are willing to follow me," said Sephiroth in an almost whispery voice that only the two could hear.

"I understand Sephiroth-sama," said Kimimaro, as he left his Master's side, and motioned for the Sound Four to follow him with a look that told the four to not argue with him.

After those five former bodyguards of Orochimaru left, Kin along with Dosu, and Zaku had come into the room to see their assigned sensei in his current state of anguish. It was because of Sephiroth's actions they weren't currently dead or worse at the hands of the now late Orochimaru during the Chuunin Exams.

"What about us Sephiroth-sensei?" said Kin, as she saw the young swordsman look at them for a second, and then close his eyes in thought.

At least she thought he closed them in thought.

"Keep watch for any suspicious activity in Wave, as we may experience some in the next few days, and return here in the event there are ANBU in the area," said Sephiroth, as he saw the trio nod, and head out to keep an eye on things for him.

"I can manipulate the poison in your body with my bloodline and pull out of your body Sephiroth-sama. Not all of it, but enough to cause you less pain, and help your recovery proceed much faster," said Haku, as she studied the seal, and seeing it was a vile slowly spilling the poison into Sephiroth's body at a rate meant to subdue rather then kill him.

"How much of it will remain?" said Sephiroth feeling Haku slowly working her medical skills on him.

"Half of what he gave you. I don't know how much Jiraiya-san sealed into your body, but I can remove half of what is in you now, and will try treating the rest that remains in your system," said Haku seeing him nod at her words.

"It is to be expected. Things are never easy for someone like me," said Sephiroth, as he coughed again, but with less force behind it, and less blood came out of his mouth.

"True," said Haku, as she carefully used her bloodline to manipulate the liquid out of Sephiroth's body without hurting him, and walked over to an old slightly dusty glass before depositing the contents into it.

While that happened, Kimimaro came back in with the former Sound Four, who saw some form of color had returned to Sephiroth now that half the poison had been removed, and was no longer threatening to make things worse. Still, it didn't mean the infamous young swordsman was out of the woods yet, as his body was still weakened, and it would not be long before ANBU came hunting for them.

"They've reached a decision Sephiroth-sama," said Kimimaro, as he stood beside his Master, and it hurt the Kaguya to see him like this.

It reminded the albino all to well of his own disease had weakening his body.

"And what did they decide?" said Sephiroth, as he saw the former Sound Four look a bit nervous, and nudged Kidomaru forward to answer.

"We decided to follow you Sephiroth-sama. We know what you did for Kimimaro and the Genin team that was going to be used for whatever it is Orochimaru did when facing the Hokage. You see the value of those, who serve under your command, and we kind of want to see how that goes. So if you're cool with it, we'd like to...," said Kidomaru before Tayuya decided to interrupt him.

"Oh, what the six armed fucker means is we'd like to join you, and help out anyway we can because you're not like the snake pedophile!" said Tayuya seeing Kidomaru glare at her for that.

It made Sephiroth let out an amused chuckle at them despite the pain it had caused to his body.

"Very well. For the moment, you can rest to recover your lost strength, and prepare a plan should the Leaf send ANBU here," said Sephiroth seeing the four nod and look for a room to sit down in before coming up with a plan.

"What about me Sephiroth-sama?" said Kimimaro seeing the swordsman resting his head back on the couch.

"You need to receive more healing treatments from Haku since your disease is not fully removed from your body," said Sephiroth seeing the female ice user becoming hesitant in leaving his side, but the silent command with his eyes told Haku to obey, and saw the last Kaguya nod in understanding.

"Will you be all right by yourself here Sephiroth-sama?" said Kimimaro knowing they could move him to a bed upstairs if they needed to.

"I just need to rest. I won't go anywhere. I promise," said Sephiroth seeing his two most loyal subordinates nod their heads and closed his eyes to rest.

(Konoha-2 Days Later-Hokage Tower)

"So he's been weakened considerably, is that your belief in this matter Jiraiya-sama," said Koharu, as she along with the other high ranking officials of Konoha's government had a meeting with the Sannin about the situation with Sephiroth, and about the poison laced seal on the Namikaze's chest.

"Yes. Roughly 60 percent of the seal I attached to Sephiroth has poisoned his body just enough that we could send an ANBU team to take him down," said Jiraiya, as his hand hurt from where Haku had stabbed him, and took a medic some time to heal his injuries.

"While that is all good in theory, where could he even hide, and is it someplace we have an alliance with in order to prevent an international incident?" said Homura, as he saw Jiraiya look deep in thought on the matter, and knew even he was unsure on where their foe may have fled.

"I don't know. That village Orochimaru founded could be a good start, but I highly doubt Sephiroth would go back there to recover, and will more then likely head someplace he's knows we won't find him until much later," said Jiraiya, as he knew of several locations to look for Sephiroth, but the way the Leaf was damaged during the invasion, much of the manpower needed was being directed to fixing the village, and couldn't spare anyone at the moment to hunt their enemy down.

"When can a team be formed to track Sephiroth down?" said Danzo, as he had his own timetable to follow, and needed his own forces to prepare a team.

"It depends on whose alive, injured, or dead right now. I need a combination of trackers, assault, and possibly assassination specialists to be put together," said Jiraiya, as he saw Tsunade behind them with her hands laced together, looking at him dead in the eyes the entire time, and they were filled with pure anger.

"We'll make a list of who is available to you Jiraiya-sama," said Koharu, as she saw him nod, and leave with Tsunade doing the same while ignoring her _advisors_ protest.

"Jiraiya!" said Tsunade, as she saw the man turn to face her, and he did not look happy to have a conversation with her right now.

"What Tsunade?" said the Toad Sannin seeing his old teammate walking towards him with a purpose.

"You can fool them, but not me. I know you have a team in mind and not all of them are ANBU," said Tsunade, as she saw him shrug slightly, and knew that was a "so what?" answer for him.

"I had a few interesting candidates. Like Genin Team 9 with Maito Gai for one holds promise. I was also thinking Inuzuka Hana could be added to the tracking team with her brother and I need Yugao's ANBU team. Along with Yuhi Kurenai, Hatake Kakashi, and the oldest of the two Ino-Shika-Cho teams since those two will be able to stop that Haku girl from helping him should she decide to get involve," said Jiraiya, as he saw Tsunade narrowed her eyes, and looking at him with suspicion.

"And what makes you think _half_ of them will want to fight Sephiroth?" said Tsunade, as she saw Jiraiya smirk at him, and didn't like it.

"Because they know it's the right thing to do Tsunade. Because it is their duty as Shinobi to do things no one else can be asked. Something _you_ have forgotten," said Jiraiya, as he saw the woman a breath away from sending him to the ER, and making sure he stayed in a coma for the rest of his life.

"Don't lecture me on doing one's duty Jiraiya. You're the one that conspired against your own Godson and helped cause the stupid prophecy you wanted to stop from happening. Why don't you go out there and sire another bastard child and then _raise_ _it_ like a parent should? Or are you too old and limp downstairs to even get a woman to have your bastard child?" said Tsunade before walking away from a now angry Jiraiya while smirking at getting the last word in.

(Konoha Hospital-Sometime Later)

"So you are accepting my offer Hinata? If I choose to leave Konoha, you will come with me, and Shizune as my official apprentice?" said Tsunade to Hinata seeing the girl nod her head vigorously.

"Yes. I accept your offer Tsunade-sama. I can't stand Konoha anymore. I see the truth in the people of this village and it sickens me to no end," said Hinata, as she couldn't stay in the village anymore, and felt the need to escape from this place.

"Good. At the rate things are going, we'll be leaving here sooner then later, and I can't wait since there is nothing holding me back from leaving the village again. Not anymore this time," said Tsunade, as she would have stayed after the Kyuubi attack, and raised Naruto had certain factors prevented that possibility.

"I understand," said Hinata, as she knew this was for the best since Hanabi would not be branded with the Cage Bird Seal, and her cousin Neji would be in good hands since the younger of the two sisters wasn't like the Hyuuga Elders in wanting to use the Cage Bird Seal on the Branch Family members.

"Tsunade-sama, the Councils will see to it that your traveling privileges are revoked, and we will be hunted constantly by Hunter Nin," said Shizune with concern knowing what the consequences would be of leaving the village and if the powers that be running the Leaf wished to punish the female Hokage further.

"Let them. I'll send each one back to them in pieces," said Tsunade, as she turned to her right to stare at the young apprentice, and smiled at the Hyuuga girl knowing that Month of training had paid off for the Chuunin Exams.

"And I'll help," said Hinata, as she knew where her loyalties lied, and it wasn't with the Leaf village.

It was with those that believed in her. Those that saw Hyuuga Hinata as a diamond in the rough that just needed to be molded into said diamond before polishing the jewel with key precision to make it shine beautifully. The one person, who saw such potential in her first was Sephiroth, and had made it known to those around him knowing that the right person being the Hokage would look into such claims before seeing they were indeed accurate.

"That's the spirit Hinata-chan!" said Tsunade, as she was loving this girl being her student with each passing day, and would look forward to teaching Hinata everything she could in the medical arts.

And then some.

(Wave Country-1 Week Later)

"Another day without incident so far Sephiroth-sama," said Kimimaro seeing his Master resting in a newly acquired comfortable chair meant for someone in his condition, now wearing all white this time from head to toe with a hood over his face, and drinking the herbal tea Haku prepared to combat the poison.

"So far Kimimaro. Just because we do not have anything to report yet, doesn't mean that there won't be in the near future, and to think otherwise would be foolish. What about Tazuna? How did your conversation with him go?" said Sephiroth, as he was no longer coughing dark blood, and was slowly getting stronger with each passing day.

"I understand Sephiroth-sama. As for Tazuna, he was a little concerned about you being here in Wave Country, but I assured him it was only temporary, and you are not here to cause him harm. He has also promised me that no one will know you are here though his tongue," said Kimimaro, as he saw Sephiroth nod his head in understanding, and sipped more of his tea.

"That is good news to hear. Remember Kimimaro, showing mercy to the right people can allow one to have a means to disappear, and stay hidden for as long as necessary," said Sephiroth knowing the old man was still grateful to be spared the feeling of death with Masamune piercing his gut or head being taken off in one quick slash.

"I will remember that Sephiroth-sama. I have also had your Genin team do additional training to further prepare them for battle," said Kimimaro, as he had the Sound Four take shifts with the trio, and manage a proper training regime for everyone.

"Good work Kimimaro. How go your treatments?" said Sephiroth, as he could tell that the albino was getting healthier thanks to Haku, and the notes pertaining to the treatments Tsunade had administered during their one Month stay in Konoha.

"They are progressing well Sephiroth-sama. Haku believes my disease is nearly cured," said Kimimaro seeing Haku nod in agreement.

"Keep continuing the treatments as scheduled until Haku can say for certain your disease has been removed and continue with random checkups at times to make sure it doesn't come back," said Sephiroth, as he smiled at his two loyal subordinates, and saw they were pleased with this information.

_"Kimimaro. Its Dosu. We may have a problem,"_ said Dosu into his radio that reached the albino at the named "safe house" since the group didn't know what else to call it.

"Go ahead," said Kimimaro listening in while Haku looked at Sephiroth with concern.

_"Kin went into town after we died her hair and Haku was able to get her a civilian dress to further blend in with the populous in order to better keep a look out. She just sent me a Morse code message into her radio using one of her hair pins and relayed to me that Leaf Shinobi are snooping around asking questions about Sephiroth-sensei. One of them from what she described was Jiraiya of the Sannin," _said Dosu, as he along with Zaku were about 15 minutes away from their sector near the "safe house", and the Sound Four were also covering their own sectors right now too.

"Do nothing! Any noticeable attention by us will lead the Sannin here and in Sephiroth-sama's current condition, he cannot stand up against him, and we do not have the strength to repel the man _plus_ whatever forces are backing him up," said Kimimaro, as he saw his still weakened Master stroking Haku's hand gently while she looked from Sephiroth to the albino with a "we need a strategy" look on her face.

_"Right. From what Kin reported, it's a pretty heady group following the Toad Sannin, as it has mostly Jounin, a Special Jounin, some ANBU, two Inuzuka, and the experienced Genin team that was in the Chuunin Exams. The one with the green spandex kid, who earned Sephiroth-sensei's recognition when fighting Sabaku no Gaara in the Prelims, and their sensei too,"_ said Dosu, as he knew they were no match for the Sannin, and the rest would just run right over them easily.

"Troublesome," said Sephiroth, as he used the line of a certain Nara boy in Konoha, and his just as lazy Nara of a Father.

"Can we escape? All of us. Leave in randomly different areas and then meet up with each other somewhere else?" said Haku, as she saw Kimimaro look away deep in thought, and saw Sephiroth had his eyes closed while doing the same.

"We can't. If we try to leave now, they will discover us, and try to capture one of you before interrogating the caught individual for information," said Sephiroth, as he had hoped the Sannin would be delayed by the damage done to the village, and the lockdown after the invasion would last longer.

Apparently not.

"Sephiroth-sama is right. For now, we must make absolutely no movement unless there is no choice, but to move if spotted, and if that happens you must move _away_ from us. Stall them if your forced to fight," said Kimimaro seeing Sephiroth wince slightly when he tried to move and fell back in his chair.

The poison wouldn't fully leave his system and Kyuubi estimated another _three_ full days under Haku's care before he was back to normal.

But could they last three whole days?

_"Kin is going to continue surveillance by going around town while pretending to shop at different stores. Since the town is small enough she can be at difference places they are and not look suspicious,"_ said Dosu knowing he couldn't do it because of his bandaged face and Zaku's hands had devices in his palms that people might notice.

Kin was the only one on the team that could pass for a normal person.

"Understood. Once Kin is done, have her report back, but take the long way around near one of the Sound Four to make sure she's not being followed, and report should they get near any of sectors one of us is in," said Kimimaro hearing the confirmation from Dosu, who went about retransmitting the order to the others, and Kin respectively since the two Inuzuka with the group of Leaf Shinobi might pick up the voices on her earpiece.

"How long until you recover Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku, as she saw him move again, but the pain behind it was clear that the poison had done more then enough damage even with the half she removed fro his body.

Haku shuddered to think what the full dosage of this would do to him.

"Three days...including this one," said Sephiroth simply to the woman.

"Unfortunately Sephiroth-sama, we'll be lucky to survive the hour, much less the rest of today, and tonight if we're not careful," said Kimimaro knowing the group from the Leaf would eventually find them given the estimated strength in the area and that wasn't even counting potential bloodlines among the group too.

"We will endure nonetheless. There is no other choice. In the event we are caught, you must flee without me, and escape their persecution," said Sephiroth seeing the two look at him in disbelief.

"We cannot! We won't!" said Kimimaro seeing Sephiroth look at him with a kind smile that seemed to show a part of the swordsman that did not fit him yet was natural all the same.

"You must. Deep down, I am a heartless monster. A monster, who hates what he cannot have, and it was always meant to be that as a monster...I die alone like I have in my past life," said Sephiroth seeing Haku have tears in her eyes and hugging him now.

"That's not true Sephiroth-sama. You can have it. Believe me when I say you are _not_ a heartless monster like everyone thinks. You can love and you can _be_ loved," said Haku, as she didn't want him to believe he was like that since his actions disproved it, and just showed the swordsman _did_ care about others.

'If only it were that simple Haku,' thought Sephiroth, as a part of Uzumaki Naruto within the body wished for love too, and both had been denied it all their lives.

Even if love of some kind was now remotely within Sephiroth's reach...it would just be taken away.

"I know you don't wish us to throw away our lives, but we will defend you with every fiber of our being Sephiroth-sama, and do what we must to make sure you live long enough to fulfill your dream," said Kimimaro, as he was not about to let his Master die, and at the hands of these Leaf scum.

His warrior pride and honor as a Kaguya would not let him.

(In Town-With Jiraiya)

Jiraiya the Toad Sannin _knew_ they were being watched by someone in town, but the people all looked the same to him, and was finding it difficult to pinpoint the pair of eyes watching his every movement. If he had either of the two Ino-Shika-Cho groups with him, the Sannin was positive the person spying for Sephiroth would be revealed sooner to him, and find the weakened swordsman sooner. Many people were already looking at or the area around him while wondering what he and the large Shinobi force from the Leaf were doing here in Wave Country since they didn't know of any possible mission that required so many people from Konoha.

"Did you find anything? Anyone that seems remotely suspicious?" said Jiraiya into his headset hidden under his helmet and hair to the others in the group.

"Nothing so far. Are you sure he'd head here? After what happened here with Zabuza?" said Anko, as she had read the report, and wondered if anyone would help Sephiroth in his moment of weakness.

"Sephiroth spared Tazuna the end of his sword during that mission. The people of Wave Country know that it is because of him, Gato is now dead, and the bridge is complete. If there is one place Sephiroth could hide for a short time, it would be here, and this could be the only chance we get at capturing him. That seal I hit him with can't be duplicated again and Sephiroth could be nearly recovered by now," said Jiraiya, as he could try to hit Sephiroth with the rest of the poison, but the swordsman would have built up some form of immunity, and only insult if not anger the One-Winged Angel of Death for using the same thing twice.

"Well Sephiroth's scent _is_ here in this town, but its mostly mild at best, and far off. Like someone with him has been here," said Kiba, as he along with Akamaru were sniffing the ground, and knew they had some general idea of where to look.

"What about the other scent? Can you lock onto it and determine who it belongs too?" said Kakashi, as he could summon his own team of dogs to lock onto the scent, and help catch Sephiroth's allies.

"Its feminine, but its not that Haku girl, and there is a smell of..._hair dye_ in the mix," said Kiba, which made things all the more frustrating for him, and the rest of the team.

"Damn it! Wait! Hair dye? Can you focus on the specific smell of the hair dye?" said Kakashi, as he was struck by an idea, and a damn good one too.

"Yeah I can. Why?" said Kiba, as he frowned at the Jounin's words, and wondered why the man wanted him to focus on just that hair dye.

"Chances are, the person spying on us is the same one with the dyed hair, and can be followed to Sephiroth if not captured to be interrogated on telling us his location," said Kakashi, as he heard Jiraiya's approval on the matter, and some of the other ANBU.

"Okay. Give me a moment. The scent is pretty strong, but its definitely from Sephiroth's female helper, and I think she's also nearby," said Kiba, as he sniffed some more, and tell their target was close.

'Shit! I'll be caught if I don't leave now,' thought Kin, as she left quietly from the shop she was in, and walked farther away from the group into an alley before heading out to a safe area where she could mask her sent.

After that was done, Kin met up with Tayuya, as she was the closest, and reported to her what happened in town. Swearing at their shitty luck, Tayuya had Kin return to the "safe house", and report to Sephiroth for further orders.

"Damn it! I lost the scent!" said Kiba, as he sniffed around with Akamaru, and the boy pounded the ground with his fist in anger.

"Masking powder. Cheap stuff too, but no less effective, and easy to make if you know the basic components. This is the homemade variety if I ever smelled it," said Hana, as she had dealt with all kinds of masking scent powders before when growing up, and the potency behind various designs of the stuff.

"She must have been near us to overhear our conversation about Sephiroth and about the smell of the hair dye," said Kakashi, as he knew that was a possibility, but was slightly hoping it would make their intended target react, and be noticed by them.

Sephiroth trained his students well.

"What do you want to do? I doubt she'll make an appearance again and may try to warn Sephiroth of our arrival here in Wave," said Anko, as she knew from her own experience in infiltration missions that once a covers blown, you get out of there, and report what you know before its too late.

"I'll go get us a room for the night. The rest of you spread out around town and look for anyone else that seems suspicious for us to look into tomorrow," said Jiraiya, he left to take care of the living arrangements at a hotel, and see if anyone there knew anything.

(With Team 10, Kiba, Gai, Yugao, and Anko)

"What's with all this secrecy?" said Yugao, as she didn't like hiding things from her ANBU team, and this was one of those times.

"Relax Yugao-chan. I just brought you here to talk strategy with us. We need a plan that doesn't involve us fighting Sephiroth in order to bring him back to Konoha," said Anko, as she saw the Neko mask wearing ANBU woman frown at her, even if no one could see it behind the ANBU mask, and smiled back.

"No amount of planning can help us in the event we do find this guy Anko. There are still several unknowns with Sephiroth's condition and anyone else aside from the Haku girl helping him," said Yugao, as she knew their powerhouse of a Shinobi team could get the job done if the opposing force was small, but she didn't become Captain of her ANBU squad by running into the unknown, and side on the way of caution.

"Which is why I spoke with Jiraiya-sama on this Yugao-san and he felt our team should split up from the rest to form an smaller strike force to search another side of Wave near the water for any houses there while his searches the rest near the bridge.

"What about my squad?" said Yugao frowning behind her mask.

"Jiraiya-sama wants them camped out on the mainland just past the bridge there just incase Sephiroth tries to escape that way," said Gai while sensing the woman didn't like it.

"Hey don't look so bummed Yugao-chan. I was against the idea from the start. Knowing our luck, we encounter the gaki, and get our assess kicked by the group with him," said Anko since she felt they should act as a single group rather then split it into two of them.

"We'll look tomorrow. Jiraiya-sama had already summoned some toads to guard the ports until late tomorrow morning and our group will take shifts from the hotel closest to the bridge so any point of leaving is out of the question," said Neji, as he had scanned that area of the town, and found Sephiroth's chakra signature to be nonexistent in the area.

"I just hope this doesn't come back to bite us in the ass," said Tenten, as she didn't want to fight that Haku girl since she had the means to take down Lee, and the rest of them too if push came to shove.

(The Next Day)

"The toads Jiraiya-sama summoned reported no suspicious movement at the ports last night and no movement at the bridge either. There is a good chance Sephiroth is still here in Wave recovering," said Kurenai, as she brought out a map of the town they were in, and the different areas that were looked at had an "X" on them.

"These different areas here haven't been checked out yet and there is a chance Sephiroth is hiding out in one of the old houses until he can fully recover. Considering how much poison I got into his body before the Haku girl stabbed my hand sign making hand at the time, he shouldn't be able to do much right now so getting past whatever Sephiroth has for bodyguards is our only real problem at this point, and they should be taken down with extreme prejudice," said Jiraiya, as he saw the group nod, but saw Team 10, and even Gai looking a little troubled by that.

"Given what we know, I suspect Sephiroth has at _least_ five bodyguards if you count the Genin team, and Haku along with that albino I heard was named Kimimaro. He's possibly the strongest of them all and we don't know what the man can do so stay on your toes. Gai, I'm putting you in charge of the squad with Anko being your second-in-command, and to report in any additional forces should you encounter any." said Jiraiya, as he saw the Jounin nod, and head out with his team.

"You think they'll run into Sephiroth or his bodyguards?" said Kakashi after the group was no longer in the room to hear him.

"Maybe. In any case, they should get the job done, or at least weaken our enemies before we arrive to back them up. The Fire Daimyo wants Sephiroth alive for trial and I aim to deliver. We may not get another chance like this again in capturing him Kakashi and I'm not going to blow it," said Jiraiya, as he saw the former ANBU Captain nod, and get into his own position to search for Sephiroth.

(With Sephiroth)

"I'm sorry Sephiroth-sensei. Its because of me they know you're here in Wave Country," said Kin, as she knelt before the young swordsman, and was slightly trembling in front of him knowing that a cruel punishment was now possibly awaiting her.

She wanted to report to him yesterday, but Sephiroth had fallen into a meditative sleep to further assist in the removal of the poison, and Haku refused to let anyone interrupt his slumber.

"Its all right Kin. The fact you were able to avoid being followed or captured more then makes up for it. Besides, I have no doubt they would have discovered I was here in Wave Country, and begin the process of casting a net over the area to catch me," said Sephiroth seeing the girl happy that there would be no punishment at his hands.

"Thank you Sephiroth sensei. What should I do now?" said Kin, as she saw him frown in thought, and look to Kimimaro to step forward.

"Kimimaro, inform everyone to slowly, and _discreetly_ come back here to the house. It won't be long until we have company," said Sephiroth seeing the albino nod and leave at once.

"We could still find a way to get you out of here Sephiroth-sama. If we can acquire a boat of some kind, we can get out to sea, and head to Water Country," said Haku, as she knew it would be dangerous for her, but amongst the chaos there with the political strife, and the civil war going on would be perfect for someone like Sephiroth to hide there.

"Seek temporary peace and quiet in a country crippled by war. How ironic and yet clever of you Haku. You have been paying attention to the strategy lessons I've been teaching I see," said Sephiroth, as he had spent his time in the chair imparting mental knowledge to all those around him, and further assisting in their training in that regard.

"I try Sephiroth-sama," said Haku blushing at his praise.

_"Sephiroth-sensei we have another problem,"_ said Kidomaru into the swordsman's own earpiece.

"Go ahead Kidomaru," said Sephiroth calmly though there was a clear edge in his voice.

_"Zaku is in trouble. He's encountered a group of Leaf Shinobi while heading to you, but had to divert from his present course, and launch an attack with his hands. There is a chance he could be captured by the enemy and interrogated by them for information,"_ said Kidomaru with worry, as Kin had been given a Bingo Book, and told pointed to the Leaf Shinobi in it that she saw yesterday.

"Who is closest to him right now?" said Sephiroth simply knowing someone could flank the group and then flee with Zaku.

_"Jirobo is, but he's not the fastest one of the group, and could also be captured if he's not careful,"_ said Kidomaru, as the widest man of the group was usually the one in the back of their group when fleeing because he could easily create defensive Jutsus, and weaken the enemy before escaping.

"It can't be helped for that is a risk one takes when being a Shinobi. Fortunately, Jirobo just needs to stall them long enough for Zaku to get away and then himself before he comes back here," said Sephiroth, as knowing it couldn't be helped that this was going to happen, and slowly rose from his chair much to Haku's protest.

_"I'll let him know,"_ said Kidomaru simply.

"You are not strong enough to face them Sephiroth-sama," said Haku holding him so he could support himself better.

"I'm strong enough," said Sephiroth with his voice leaving no room for Haku to argue with him on this matter while he used his power to manipulate his clothing to be what it was before the all white attire.

(With the Advance Leaf Team)

"Damn this kid is annoying," said Anko, as she dodges another intense sound blast from Zaku's hands, and couldn't stay in one place to long to wrap him up in her snakes.

"Fang over fang!" said Kiba, as he launched his attack with Akamaru, and made Zaku roll quickly to his right only to be hit by weighted foot to the face by Lee via spin kick into a tree.

"Hidden Shadow Snake Hands!" said Anko, as she quickly launched her snakes at Zaku, and bound him to the tree with her precious serpents.

"Damn it! Forgive me Sephiroth-sensei. I tried to live up to your expectations," said Zaku mumbled more to himself then his foes knowing they were going to force information out of him.

"I don't suppose you're going to _willingly_ tell us where we ca find Namikaze Sephiroth, gaki? Please do resist. I've been having a bad week and I need an excuse to unleash all my frustration on someone," said Anko grinning in a dangerous sense that made weaker men wet themselves.

Surprisingly, Zaku held his ground, and glared defiantly at her.

"I have nothing to say to you," said Zaku having been taught by Sephiroth on how to speak when it comes to interrogations during the short time the swordsman was resting.

When being interrogated, do not insult your interrogator, as it will only make them want to lash out at you in more painful way then necessary, and the aftermath could make you break. Be mindful what you _do_ say, speak half-truths, but never truly lie, and skate the line in-between the two known as misdirection. A lie can be a truth from a certain point of view, but only in the way one phrases it can the lie be considered a truth, and not a lie that will bring about more pain.

"I was hoping you would say that," said Anko, as she made her group of snake squeeze him painful, and making him cry out slightly for a good 10 minutes before the Special Jounin stopped.

"Just tell us where Sephiroth is and Anko-san will stop," said Gai, as he saw Anko look at him with a smile, and not one of those nice smiles either.

"Stop? Who said I would stop here? I can take him back to the Leaf and he can be my new boy toy. The last one is too beat up and can't handle me anymore. I need someone, who had more youth, and spring in his step," said Anko while giving Zaku a look that told the boy she meant him.

"Anko!" said Yugao, as she knew her friend was messing around, but the boy didn't know that, and while she was all for getting information...she did have to protect the dignity of the female gender too.

"Even if I did tell you, there is no guarantee I'd be let go, and just be carted off to your village for whatever purpose it would serve," said Zaku feeling a slight squeeze again from the snakes.

"What if we made one?" said Neji seeing the boy look at him and then scoff at such an idea.

"I have no guarantee you would keep it. From what I understand, the people in the Leaf just love hearing the sound of their own voice to speak the truth, and do not exactly honor agreements with others," said Zaku seeing Neji's eyes narrow slightly before activating his Byakugan eyes.

"We're not like those other people in the Leaf. We'd honor it," said Tenten seeing Yugao shake her head no at this idea.

"You are just an advance force. The leader of this group would, but there is nothing to stop the leader of the main group to say otherwise, and back out of the deal," said Zaku seeing the higher ranked Shinobi of the group frowning at that since it was true.

Gai was the leader of this group, but only because Jiraiya made him one, and even then the Sannin had final say on all matters unless reporting to the Hokage. Any possible deal Gai made right now could and would be overruled by Jiraiya before they took Zaku back to the Leaf for execution for protecting a wanted man.

"Sephiroth-sama taught you well," said Lee seeing Zaku look at him now while the others turned too at hearing Sephiroth's name being spoken with such respect.

"Better then Orochimaru-teme ever did. Sephiroth-sensei knew the Sannin was going to throw us away during the Chuunin Exams for his own purposes and took measures to prevent our demise," said Zaku seeing Anko raise an eyebrow at that and saw the surprise on the faces of the others.

"The same is said for me too. After my fight with Sabaku no Gaara, I was told my life as a Shinobi was no longer possible, and yet Sephiroth-sama came to me before using his power to heal my wounds. He told me that my battle with the Kazekage's youngest was one of the most impressive he's seen in our generation and to see me unable to do it again was unthinkable in his eyes," said Lee, as he could tell the group was surprised by this, and wondered why he was mentioning this now.

"So you are among the rare few, who actually respects my sensei. How unfortunate it is we are on opposite sides of the fence when it comes to this matter. Still, I cannot reveal to you his location, and I would rather die then betray Sephiroth-sensei," said Zaku, as he saw Lee frown with sadness in his eyes, and look away while Yugao brought out her sword.

"If that's how you feel," said Yugao, as she was about to perform the deed, and send a message to anyone else helping Sephiroth.

"Earth Style: Earth Shaking Palm Jutsu!" said Jirobo, as he slammed his hands to the ground, and kicked up rubble with rocks hitting the group unexpectedly making Anko break concentration with her snake to let go of Zaku.

"Jirobo!" said Zaku getting off the ground and getting away from the Leaf Shinobi.

"Go back to the house. Sephiroth-sama needs you there," said Jirobo, as he saw the Leaf Shinobi trying to get off the ground before he took off with Zaku, and hoped they could lose them through the dense forest.

"Decapitating Air Wave!" said Zaku, as he blasted the ground where the Leaf Shinobi were, and sent them flying into a bunch of trees.

Without looking back, the two headed for the "safe house", which would no longer be safe, and prepare for a last stand against the Leaf.

(Sometime Later)

"He's in there?" said Yugao, as she saw Neji using his eyes to scan the inside of the house after Kiba tracked their scent here, and had already reported to Jiraiya about the location.

"Yes. Sephiroth's chakra is coating the entire second floor of the house, but he's there, and I'm counting _nine_ additional chakra signatures inside with him," said Neji, as he was not expecting so many, and wondered who else was with the swordsman.

"Could be those four that were with him after barrier went down. They put up that barrier around Orochimaru and Tsunade-sama before leaving with Sephiroth-san after getting poisoned by Jiraiya-sama," said Gai seeing the group nod.

"Things just became more difficult. If those four were with Orochimaru, then they must be strong, and won't go down without a fight," said Kiba knowing those four must have a lot of power if they were entrusted with protecting Orochimaru during the invasion.

"All the more reason to take them down now. Jiraiya's team will be here in moments," said Yugao, as she got her sword ready, and knew this would be it.

"Yosh! Tenten, Neji, and Lee will handle the three Genin from the Chuunin Exams. Kiba with Akamaru will fight Haku and I will fight the Kimimaro character," said Gai seeing the group nod while Anko had a smile on her face that told everyone she felt like the lucky one on this mission.

"And the sexy angel boy is mine!" said Anko with everyone sweat dropping.

"Don't forget me Anko," said Yugao looking at the Special Jounin while ignoring her friends antics.

"Oh Yugao-chan! I didn't know you wanted some of him too. What's wrong with Hayate-kun? Does he not have enough stamina due to his lungs?" said Anko making the ANBU woman blush and making those around them do the same.

"Its not like that Anko. Stop being a pervert!" said Yugao seeing the Special Jounin now giggling at the fact she got under her skin.

(Inside the House)

"The group of Leaf Nins that Zaku encountered is finally here. The rest of them will be joining them shortly," said Dosu using his manipulation of sound to help overhear the conversation outside.

"We could take them, but we'd be overrun before long, and then subdued if not killed before they went after Sephiroth-sama," said Kidomaru, as he looked from his position to the second floor of the house where Sephiroth was, and knew Haku along with Kimimaro would be the swordsman's last line of defense.

"So what the fuck should we do? I don't feel like giving up to a bunch of cocksuckers anytime soon," said Tayuya, as she hated waiting, and hated being in situation where she was screwed no matter.

"We make our stand against them. Kimimaro and Haku are the strongest of us. They can get him out of here should we fail," said Kidomaru seeing the others nod in agreement.

"Did you ever think we'd go down this way brother?" said Sakon to his brother Ukon on his head.

"No, but it's the only way I can think we should," said Ukon, as he saw his brother nod his head, and looked out the window before they all went outside forming a line in front of the house.

"You can come out now. We know you're there," said Jirobo, as he saw the entire group from Jiraiya to Inuzuka Kiba come out, and face them.

"We'll only offer you this once. Step aside and let us take Namikaze Sephiroth from here. You don't owe him anything," said Kakashi seeing each pair of eyes from the group in front of him hardening considerably.

"How about you go fuck yourself and that gay old man next to you," said Tayuya angrily at the former ANBU Captain.

"How can you throw away your lives for someone like him?" said Kurenai, as she them preparing to fight, and it was clear no form of reasoning could convince them to stand aside.

"How can we not?" said Dosu countered ready to bring pain to his enemies.

"Judging from the fact Sephiroth isn't here, I take it he's still incapacitated, and unable to defend himself," said Jiraiya with a hint of pride in his voice over what he did to the One-Winged Angel of Death.

"He's more active then you know," said Jirobo cryptically making the Sannin frown.

"Take them down!" said Jiraiya with his voice leaving no room to argue.

And just like that, the two forces clashed, and neither side wanting to lose to the other.

"There fighting outside," said Haku, as the sound of explosions was heard, steel meeting steel, and the cries of battle echoing loudly into the sky.

"And not a moment too soon. I just hope Sephiroth will forgive you for putting him in a false death state so he wouldn't fight anyone outside," said Kimimaro, as he was holding their Master in his arms, and ready to leave when Haku was the moment the battle could no longer be kept outside.

"I will accept any punishment he wishes to give for my actions," said Haku, as she once more felt a shiver run up her spine at the realization that Sephiroth would not be so merciful upon learning about this, and no doubt be shunned for this act.

A smash of glass from below was the signal for the two to leave with Sephiroth, as he along with Anko smashed through the window of the room, and ran with all the power they could put into their legs to get away from the fighting. They heard one of the Leaf Shinobi call out that the two were making their escape with Sephiroth and to cut off their escape route.

"We must make it to the Northern Port of Wave. It's out only chance," said Kimimaro, as he dodged the kunai thrown at him by Kakashi, and the kick from Gai after the man gave a shout of "Dynamic Entry!" moments before throwing a kunai.

"At this rate, we will be caught before reaching the port, and Sephiroth-sama will not awaken for at least another hour," said Haku, as she threw some senbon needles back at their pursuers, and noted she was able to take down some of the ANBU in the group after the needles hit their necks.

"Take him!" said Kimimaro before throwing Sephiroth to her and turned around to face the Leaf Shinobi.

"You can't! Your illness is nearly cured. What could was my treatments if you throw your life away now?" said Haku after catching their Master, as she saw Kimimaro look back, and smile at her.

"It is because of your treatments, I can fight to my fullest, and protect Sephiroth-sama with all my being. Now go!" said Kimimaro, as he saw Haku rush off while the Kaguya summoned a bone whip using his spinal column, and made a spear with his left hand.

"I will ask this once of you from one honorable warrior to the next. Please move aside Kimimaro-san." said Gai along with Kakashi with his Sharingan out were ready for a fight.

"I cannot. It is because of Sephiroth-sama, I am allowed to live this long, and become stronger then I have in Months due to my disease. I owe him my life and I will repay my debt in full my giving my life to see to it his last!" said Kimimaro, as he used the whip on Kakashi, and threw the spear at Gai.

Both dodged the weapons and attacked Kimimaro from the side. The albino dropped the weapon in his right hand, as he resorted to going for fighting via Taijutsu, and held his own against the two Jounin for a time. He was able to knock them both back, but after that happened, Kimimaro was ambushed by Hyuuga Neji hitting him several times with his Gentle Fist Taijutsu, and was then bombarded by different weapons by the bun haired girl he knew sounded like a number said twice.

Now here Kimimaro was before the group of gathered Leaf Shinobi. He was bruised, bloody, and several of his chakra points were temporarily cut off. Still, he wouldn't give up so easily that they could pursue his Master, and condemn Sephiroth-sama to a farce of a trial before a public execution.

"You are beaten. Give up now and we can take you back to Konoha to start a new life," said Neji, as he saw the albino grin, and the blood flowing down the side of his mouth.

"The only way you are getting to Sephiroth-sama is by walking over my dead body and will not die easily," said Kimimaro, as he charged forward battling Neji, Kakashi, and Gai with all the fury his body possessed.

'Such fury. Such passion. Just like the others we've defeated and captured,' thought Gai, as each of the three Genin, and the former Sound Four had left their own marks on the group before being defeated.

Unfortunately, despite his best efforts, the albino Kaguya could not win the battle against the three, even after kicking Neji right in the face knocking the Hyuuga out, and defeated Kimimaro after Gai put the man in a sleeper hold to knock him out.

"Sephiroth-sama...forgive me. I...was not worthy of your mercy," said Kimimaro in a whisper before collapsing into unconsciousness and even then his body moved to fight for him.

"You are worthy Kimimaro-san. We won't let you die here," said Gai in a whispered voice while Kakashi and Jiraiya rushed past them to go after Haku.

(With Haku and Sephiroth)

Haku got on the docked boat, kicking the fisherman on the boat _off_ of it, and putting Sephiroth down quickly below deck. After hiding her Master below, she headed up to the surface of the boat, and began to sail away from the port while thanking Kami that the wind was in her favor. Turning around to look past the aft of the ship, Haku saw Jiraiya of the Sannin, Sharingan Kakashi, and some ANBU looking on from their position at the harbor. They used water walking to continue the pursuit, but they forgot one simple, and crucial face about Haku in regards to water.

Her bloodline limit allowed for the manipulation of water and turning it into ice if she so desired.

And she desired it right now. Haku desired making water rise up and become ice spikes like she had when her Father had come with a mob to kill her. All those around her, who wished to serve Sephiroth had been taken away, and those responsible didn't seem to care about the lives they took in the process. It was unfair! How many times would she have to sit by and watch all those that cared for her Sephiroth-sama fall?

No more!

Now it was _their _turn to take some losses of their own.

"Ice Style: Ice Spikes Jutsu!" said Haku, as she unleashed all her rage at these fools, and could no longer hold back the anger that had reached the boiling point in her mind.

And she expressed that through the Jutsu she hadn't used in nearly a decade with the ANBU on the water now paying the price for their own sins against Sephiroth. Jiraiya and Kakashi managed to dodge the attack though the horror behind it did turn their heads long enough for Haku to attack them again with another Ice Jutsu. An Ice Jutsu that under normal circumstance shot thousands upon thousands of needles made of ice high into the air before falling and with the vast volume of water now around her would allow for the hitting of targets were shooting _millions_ upon _millions_ of needles that descended upon the Leaf Shinobi.

_That_ slowed them down..._painfully_!

As the two Leaf Shinobi struggled to stay afloat, a cruise ship sailed in-between the gap, and created an intense wave that sent them flying back. The rest of the group that could make it like Tenten, Kiba, Hana, and Yugao rushed past the two before boarding the boat Haku was on.

Only to find she wasn't on it and neither was Sephiroth.

They had hitched a ride on the much larger ship charted to its destination, which at the moment was unknown to Haku, but in all honesty, she could handle it, and just needed time to have Sephiroth recover. Something the Leaf would and could not come to pass knowing it would spell doom for them.

"Can we still track them?" said Kiba, as he saw the massive ship now off in the distance, and impossible to hunt down given their exhausted condition.

"No. The ship is too far away. By the time we locate where its docked, I doubt Sephiroth will be on it, and even if it he is...his health will be back to normal," said Jiraiya gravely with a sigh before looking at the dead ANBU skewered by large spikes of ice thanks to Haku with their blood staining the water.

"What about his followers?" said Kakashi, as he knew Anko, and Ibiki could have a go at them for information before imprisonment.

"They're all alive. Beaten up pretty badly, but all of them are alive, and I'm impressed with their abilities. Some of the ANBU from Yugao's team are severely injured and that's not an easy task to accomplish. Anko has some bruised ribs, but nothing a few days rest can't cure, and Kurenai has a concussion with a mean bruise on her face from where that one redhead's Oni Demon summons hit her," said Hana, as she had Gai watching over them now with Lee, and hoped the two didn't go into one of their "youthful" tirades.

"Not to mention the dead group of ANBU I have here. That in itself is a heavy price to pay. The Councils will want the Hokage to make sure all of Sephiroth's followers pay it for him," said Jiraiya, as they headed back to land, and with the rest of the group.

"They're not afraid to do so. I haven't seen loyalty like that for someone in a _long_ time," said Kakashi, as he had seen _some_ cases during the last war, and were respected for it.

"Same here. Now we need to get back to the Leaf and make our report to the Hokage," said Jiraiya, as he wasn't really looking forward to that, and even less to the Councils since it was clear they would be disappointed in finding out the team failed to capture Sephiroth in his weakened condition.

Jiraiya could only hope they would be able to use Sephiroth's loyal followers to give them some kind of edge against him in the future.

(A/N: YAY! I updated. It wasn't easy. Believe me. I was reading a few fics and they caused a disruption with my creative muse, but I should be okay now, and just need to relax for the moment. Until next time...PEACE!)


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9-Die Hard

The ship Haku had taken Sephiroth's unconscious body upon saving him from the group of Konoha Shinobi was actually a cruise liner, which had only recently after Gato's death been allowed to set a course near Wave Country, and certain places there a place to dock safely without the threat of goons harassing everyone on board the ship. The ship itself was actually headed to Fire Country on the Southeastern Dockyards approximately 20 miles away from the Leaf village.

Unfortunately, for both the ship, and its Captain there was a storm swirling around them causing a reduction in speed to prevent possible accidents from possible rocks along a reef to other ships sailing from a different direction headed their way. What the Captain didn't know was this storm was not a natural one, as it was being caused by the intense anger being generated by a single source on the cruise line, and the name of that entity causing was...Namikaze Sephiroth.

Before the One-Winged Angel of Death, a frightened Haku cowered under his rage filled eyes at what she had done to him a _second time_ by being close to his body, and ignored the teary eyes of the female ice user.

"Do you know what you've done? What your action did to those that defended me? By not being there with them, our allies were taken away back to the Leaf, and will tortured just for helping me this far before being executed!" said Sephiroth his voice was cold, cruel sounding, and the chakra he created had warped the metal around him.

In front of him, Haku had her face down submissively, but without the mask she usually had on so Sephiroth could see the repentant servant, and hoped he understood it was the only way for him to survive.

"Sephiroth-sama, I am sorry for putting you in that state, but your health...," said Haku, but the increased output of Sephiroth's power silenced her, and slowly looked into the eyes of the enraged being standing barely 10 feet from her.

"I do not _care_ about _my health_ Haku. What I do care about, is my mission, and I am now finding your presence being _disruptive _to my said mission," said Sephiroth seeing Haku's eyes widen in shock and in fear at the sudden premonition laced words.

"Sephiroth-sama?" said Haku worriedly hoping he wasn't about to do what she did not wish for him to do.

"Leave me Haku. Leave my sight. Now!" said Sephiroth seeing Haku shake her head and tears ran freely from those eyes that begged for his mercy.

"Sephiroth-sama I...," said Haku before she was blasted back by another wave of chakra and saw Masamune in Sephiroth's hands.

_**"I said leave my sight Haku! Leave before I have Masamune taste your blood should you be in my presence ever again!"**_ said Sephiroth his one wing now coming out of his shoulder and his eyes glowed with incredible power.

Slowly rising from the ground of the room they were in, Haku looked at him for a second with sad eyes, and left Sephiroth's presence to go somewhere to cry at being cast aside by her angry Master.

With her gone, Sephiroth dispelled Masamune before walking to the bathroom to see the cracked mirror showing his reflection, and scowled at appearance that scowled back him. Deep inside of Sephiroth, the last remaining piece of Uzumaki Naruto was yelling at him for being an idiot for putting the blame entirely on Haku, as she had done what was best to keep him alive, and it was because of her that the One-Winged Angel was alive due to the poison Jiraiya had hit him with back during Konoha's invasion. Who was it that had removed half of the poison in his system to recover sooner then later? Who had been the one, who comforted Sephiroth after seeing the bedroom that should have been his after being born, and was willing to accept any punishment he delivered for it?

It was Haku. She had done just about everything that could be asked of her.

_Haku deserves to be rewarded for her actions. Not shunned!_

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed at hearing the innocent part of his soul before smashing the mirror with his fist before retracting the appendage and stared at the hand for a moment in thought. Closing his eyes, Sephiroth leaned against the sink suddenly feeling weak for some reason, as he felt a pain in his chest, and grabbed the left side where the heart was located in the body. It wasn't a literal physical pain to his heart Sephiroth felt, as that much about his body he knew, and knew it was of the emotional variety.

'Mother...what should I do? I am angry at Haku and yet deep down...I shouldn't. I need your help,' thought Sephiroth, as he wondered what his Mother would do, and what he should do now?

_Isn't it obvious my son? Are you so filled with hate for the Leaf that you are incapable of love?_

'I've never known love. I wouldn't know how,' thought Sephiroth to the female voice, but it was to muffled to recognize, as it could have been either Kushina, or Jenova from the past reaching out to him like she did that fateful day centuries ago.

Maybe it was a mix of both.

_That's why Haku is here you baka! All that girl wants is to be loved by you, but she know about your handicap, and is trying to bring it out through her actions, and have possibly ruined something special. Now get off your ass, find Haku, and apologize for being the angry ass I call a son!_

'You always did know what to say...Mother,' thought Sephiroth smiled slightly, as rose to his full height, and scanned the ship for Haku's chakra signature before vanishing to her location.

(With Haku)

The female ice user sniffed in the heavy rain, as it poured down all around her, and Haku wondered why life had to be cruel? Everything and everyone had been removed from her life in some shape or form without any means to stop the chain reaction each event had caused. The loss of the Shinobi from Sound, who were like her in wanting to fight for the purpose they so desperately desired, and keeping it by serving the Master before them. Now they were in the Leaf, being tortured for information on where Sephiroth could go, and to possibly recruit them to the cause Konoha was so hell bent on finishing.

"And while this happens, Sephiroth-sama casts me aside, and has threatened to kill me if I'm in his presence ever again," said Haku sadly, as she didn't want to leave his side, even after what he threatened, and yet it hurt so much when those words were spoken.

"Haku," said Sephiroth in a whispered voice, as he was behind her now, and his wing was still out of his shoulder.

"I once said that if I dragged my feet, then my life would be forfeit, and I can only think the reason you're here is to carry out that part of the agreement," said Haku, as she closed her eyes, and had to will herself in not looking back to see him.

"I remember that part of the agreement when you asked to follow me," said Sephiroth, as he walked silently towards Haku, and saw the girl straighten slightly to brace herself for the thrust of Masamune she was no doubt expecting.

"I am sorry I could not live up to your expectations Sephiroth-sama. Hopefully my future replacement will in my place," said Haku, as she felt more tears run down her eye, and sensed Sephiroth so close now she could touch him if only for the last time.

"Haku," said Sephiroth, as he looked at the girl in front of him, and wished she'd turn around so they could talk properly.

"I'm not afraid to die Sephiroth-sama. I'm ready," said Haku, as she put her hands to her chest, and trying to fight the pain pulsing within her heart.

"I'm not here to kill you Haku. If anything...I am should be here simply for you to kill _me_ for my foolish actions and stupidity," said Sephiroth, as he put one hand on her shoulder, and felt the tenseness of Haku's body increase slightly.

Even now she expected him to do something like snap her neck or crush it with simple squeeze to the throat.

"Why do you torment me with your words?" said Haku not believing his right now.

"Because only you can understand them before anyone else. I have wronged you Haku. I have wronged you by casting aside the most loyal person I have ever met in this life or in my previous one. In my anger over the loss of the others to the Leaf, I failed to realize your actions possibly saved my life, and I shunned you for it," said Sephiroth his mouth close to her right ear, his voice barely a whisper in this storm, and he used his wing to shield her from the rain that came down upon them.

Slowly, Haku turned to face the One-Winged Angel of Death, seeing his eyes were filled with sorrow, pain, and regret for his actions against her. It hurt Haku when spoke those words, casting her aside like an angry King does a servant just for being his presence, and saw what a mistake his anger had created.

"I know you are sorry Sephiroth-sama, but even knowing that much, it still hurt me, and I felt my heart ready to break because of it," said Haku, as she slowly moved closer to fill the gap between them, and hesitantly wrapped him in a hug.

"Because you care about me," said Sephiroth simply and thought he heard Haku let out a small laugh.

"No! I don't just _care_ about you Sephiroth-sama. I...I think I also love you. Ever since I met you, I've felt this deep..._yearning_, and its been guiding my hand in protecting you from harm. I didn't really come to suspect what it was until I became jealous of that Hyuuga girl in Konoha and it only increased further in the Chuunin Exam Preliminaries when you told everyone how she had the potential to kill you." said Haku, as she felt his wing wrap around her, and felt the warmth his body created in the freezing rain.

"Love. Its always been a strange concept to me. Probably because I've never known what it feels like from either lifetime. Even if I did feel something like that, it wouldn't be easy for someone like me to love another, and in all honesty...I do not know if I can even love you back Haku," said Sephiroth, as he returned the embrace, and felt dig deeper into his chest.

"I can teach you. If you let me?" said Haku hopefully, as she looked up at him, and saw the swordsman being unsure in taking the invitation.

"And how would you go about teaching me Haku," said Sephiroth, as he saw Haku smile at him, and lean in close to his ear.

"One step at a time Sephiroth-sama. One step at a time. For now, please hold me like this, and don't stop," said Haku, as she love how close they were, and sighed happily in the process.

She didn't even notice it had stopped raining.

'Learning to love. Can I even feel such an emotion? I know I felt _something_ when I stood before Jenova centuries, but this feeling I have for Haku is different, and yet I know its something close to it. Only time will tell I suppose,' thought Sephiroth, as he decided not to focus on the concept too much, and redirect his mind to what was happening in the Leaf.

He had loyal followers to save.

(Konoha-Kimimaro's Cell)

Kaguya Kimimaro was held tightly in place by chains attached to his wrist that stretched to the wall, as the binders on the chains had seals engraved on them to suppress chakra, and was sitting on his knees currently locked in place by metal that covered the knees on down. His interrogators had come in to press for information about Sephiroth after being healed, as they wanted to know his condition, and where the One-Winged Angel of Death would go after Wave Country.

Kimimaro response was to remain silent the entire time.

They countered his silence in the ways of giving him pain. Several wounds reopened, but nothing he could not endure, as Kimimaro had been through worse, and simply let them have their moment in the sun. Not that it mattered anyway, as the Kaguya knew deep within his body, his very heart that Sephiroth would return here for them all, and unleash his God like vengeance upon the Leaf.

'Even if I am not here to see it happen, the act itself being completed is enough for me, and the fact my sacrifice put it in motion,' thought Kimimaro, as he heard the door open to his cell, and Ibiki walked in with a scowl on his face that would have made others shiver in fear.

"We need to talk," said Ibiki in a growl of a voice, as he saw Kimimaro look up at him with those definite eyes, and knew this conversation could become very short very fast.

"You are the Head of the I&T Dept., aren't you? The one, who reports to the Hokage, and tells her your findings on me along with the others? In that case, I have nothing to say to the likes of you except this so listen well. I am not afraid to die. I am not afraid of pain in any shape or form unleashed upon my being. My purpose in this world, is to protect the one, who has given me honor, and the respect denied my whole life. You seek to destroy that one person for whatever reason the Leaf wants him destroyed, using me along with the others to achieve your goal, which has brought us here to an impasse, as I will _not_ betray Sephiroth-sama, and I'd rather die knowing my last act to him was of one loyalty instead of betrayal," said Kimimaro right into the eyes of Ibiki that spoke volumes to the scarred man before seeing the Leaf Shinobi leave the room.

With his mind spoken, Kimimaro lowered his head to wait for the inevitable end to his life, and a silent prayer that Sephiroth along with Haku were doing all right.

(Hokage's Office)

"So he won't talk?" said Tsunade, as she saw Ibiki shake his head no, and sighed at the resistance the entire group Jiraiya brought back.

"None of them will. I've never seen anything like it before. In the short time they were with Sephiroth, he managed to have their undying loyalty, and won't break for any offer we give in exchange for information," said Ibiki, as some had been offered some form of leniency, but they all spat in the face of those deals, and simply awaited the execution that would await them.

"They are certain people in this world Ibiki, who cannot be bribed, beaten, or be made to submit to the wills of others. This village has forgotten that because its become too fat and lazy to see the truth about that simple fact since we've been victorious in battles more times then not," said Tsunade, as she saw Ibiki nod in understanding, and look out the window at the village.

"Like Sephiroth," said Ibiki simply, as he knew the boy was something to do what he did in such a short time, and wondered to himself if staying on the side of the Leaf _was_ the right thing to do?

"Like my Godson. Not that it matters in regards to those eight since the Fire Daimyo is coming here to witness their public execution in the next couple of days," said Tsunade wishing Jiraiya had kept his big mouth shut, but couldn't since the Councils would have just done it for him, and made things worse.

"There is more to it then that, right?" said Ibiki, as he saw the Hokage nod, and rub her temples in frustration.

"The Fire Daimyo along with Jiraiya want to force Sephiroth's hand in coming here in the belief he's not up to full strength yet since they know he wasn't conscious at the time. The Councils asked Inoichi to do a psychological profile on Sephiroth based on what we do know about him and his past actions since his return. I take it you read the report when it came out?" said Tsunade, as the report came out only yesterday, but every single Shinobi with clearance had gotten a copy, and was reading it word for word.

"Yeah. It was a real page turner. Inoichi believes that while Sephiroth is indeed ruthless in the ways of the sword the old legends make him out to be, there is a sliver of humanity now in him from Uzumaki Naruto, and is keeping your Godson from destroying everyone in his line of sight. He also believes if provoked, Sephiroth will permanently suppress his 'conscious', and bring out the fear monster that nearly destroyed the world ages ago," said Ibiki seeing the Hokage nod at that information.

"If these eight are killed, I fear for the lives of the innocent people in the Leaf, as they will not be spared Sephiroth's wrath, and we may lose the piece of Uzumaki Naruto that keeps him in check," said Tsunade looking out at the window at the people below and had a premonition of what was going to happen.

"Bringing about a natural disaster that will be far worse then the Kyuubi ever was," said Ibiki grimacing at this news.

How were they going to get out of this?

(3 Days Later-Day of the Public Execution)

The Fire Daimyo smiled with pride, as he was surrounded by his samurai bodyguards, and looked at the eight individuals about to be hanged one by one on his command. Beside him, the Hokage was frowning at this move, as she had told him this was a very bad idea in provoking Sephiroth, but the Feudal Lord ignored it, and looked to his other side where Jiraiya was standing. They knew that this announcement of executing the loyal followers of Sephiroth would reach beyond Fire Country and reach their intended target.

"People of the Leaf, I stand before you as your Feudal Lord, with your Hokage on one side, and Jiraiya of the Sannin on the other. Behind us, you will see the eight followers of Namikaze Sephiroth, who was responsible for killing the Sandaime Hokage, and helped Orochimaru with the invasion of this village before betraying the late snake Sannin," said the Fire Daimyo showing the bound and ready to be executed group via hanging.

'I shouldn't be up here. This is wrong and these two don't care!' thought Tsunade, as she saw her apprentice watching with the people below, and giving a "help them before its too late!" look that the Hokage wished she could act upon.

"For following the traitor Orochimaru, then Namikaze Sephiroth soon after, it is on my order, the Fire Daimyo of Konoha, that these eight here be executed, and a clear message be sent to their Master. A message that will ensure that it is Sephiroth himself, who is the one trembling in fear, and all those that follow him know the price of being loyal to such a monster!" said the Fire Daimyo, as he got cheers from the people, and the calling for the death of the soon to be killed prisoners.

'He's feeding off the bloodthirsty mob. How typical can you get?' thought Tsunade with disgust, as she turned to see the group about to be executed, and wanted to stop it.

"Don't even think about it Tsunade. The Fire Daimyo has an order to restrain you if your body somehow moves on its own to stop this," said Jiraiya seeing the woman look at her in surprise and then saw the surprise turn to a scowl.

"Fine! But don't come begging to me when Sephiroth is about to slice you in half," said Tsunade, as she wasn't going to help Jiraiya in that fight, and the Fire Daimyo could die of testicular cancer for all she cared.

'As if he'll have the strength to oppose me. He should still have some of the poison in his system,' thought Jiraiya, as he didn't realize the fatal flaw in his calculations, and didn't even _consider_ the possibility of Haku being able to use her bloodline to extract half of what was put into Sephiroth's body.

"Do either of you have anything to say before your death," said the Fire Daimyo seeing them all stay silent in defiance of his actions and was a bit disappointed they didn't want to beg for his mercy.

Not that he'd give it.

"_Actually_ Fire Daimyo, _I_ would like to say something on their behalf," said Sephiroth from behind the mob of people causing the said mob to scatter, scream, and hide behind anything they could.

All around him, Shinobi of the Leaf, and the Feudal Lord's samurai drew weapons to engage Sephiroth in battle.

"So you came. Finally decided to come out of hiding?" said the Fire Daimyo smiling like a kid out fishing and caught a huge one on his first try.

"Sephiroth-sama, you should not be here!" said Kimimaro, as he now struggled almost like a rabid animal in a cage to get free, and so did the others knowing he had come to their rescue.

"Nonsense. Your loyalty to me should be rewarded and I am here to do just that," said Sephiroth, as he smiled at them before walking towards the execution platform, and now walked up the steps while ignoring the armed attackers around him ready to strike.

"And do you intend to do that?" said the Fire Daimyo with a raised eyebrow and curiosity showing in his body language.

"Simple. I'm going to take their place," said Sephiroth seeing the shocked looks now on everyone's faces.

"What did you say?" said Tsunade in disbelief and saw the boy's followers looking just as shocked.

"I trade places with them. They go free. Untouched, unharmed, and unspoiled by the Leaf to go wherever they see fit," said Sephiroth, as he saw tears form in Kimimaro's eyes, and in the others too since they didn't expect this to happen.

"No Sephiroth-sama! Don't!," said Kimimaro struggling with all his might to get free so such a sacrifice wouldn't be made on their behalf.

"I will and I _must_ Kimimaro," said Sephiroth, as he was now at the top of the platform, and saw each of them looking at him with pleading faces not to do this.

"Wait! Where is that Haku girl?" said Jiraiya looking around for the female ice user in case this was some kind of ambush.

"Don't worry your pathetic life Jiraiya-san. Haku didn't have the heart to be here for what is about to happen," said Sephiroth, as he saw the Sannin glare, and take his mind off of Haku.

"So you're willing to throw away your life for theirs. Why the sudden generosity?" said Jiraiya suspiciously while staring at the One-Winged Angel right in the eyes.

"You sound surprised. Why? Didn't my Father do the same for this village? Didn't almost all of my family on both sides ever so generously give their lives for people around them? You make it sound like I'm the exception to that long standing family tradition. Still, now that you just happened to bring it up, if there was _anyone_ in my family not willing to die for others...its _you_ Jiraiya-san," said Sephiroth, as he saw Jiraiya scowl further, and could see the Sannin wanted to kill him right now for that statement.

"Watch your mouth brat!" said Jiraiya, as he wasn't about to take this from the gaki, and make him regret ever being born.

Or reborn. Or whatever it Sephiroth was in that regard.

"Or what Jiraiya? You'll try to poison me again with that seal? Won't work. My body is now fully immune to it. Even if you dumped the rest of it into my body, it would do little to hamper my power, and just be a minor annoyance like its creator," said Sephiroth, as he saw Jiraiya once more become angry with him, and would have moved forward to engage the young swordsman in combat had the Fire Daimyo raised a hand to stop it.

"You're here to trade your life for theirs. Isn't that right?" said the Fire Daimyo eyeing the boy carefully.

"Yes. Do we have a deal?" said Sephiroth while Kimimaro and the others telling him not to do this.

"Deal, _provided_ that once we set them free, they don't try to rescue you, or do something equally rash that leads to your escape," said the Fire Daimyo while seeing Sephiroth eye is followers for a second and then look back at him.

"We have an accord then," said Sephiroth with a smirk on his face and saw the group be let go though they were restrained slightly by the ANBU around them due to the fact they were still struggling.

"Sephiroth-sensei don't do this!" said Kin, as she saw the only person willing to give a damn about to die so she wouldn't have to a second time, and saw him look back at her before smiling a gentle smile that made the girl's heart feel unimaginable pain.

"It is unavoidable Kin. We do what we must," said Sephiroth, as he walked over to the middle execution spot where Kidomaru had been, and turned around before putting the noose around his neck.

"Hold on! I want to kill him," said Sasuke, as he heard the people now cheer for the last Uchiha, calling him their hero, and finishing what the Yondaime wanted.

"Out of the question," said Tsunade, as she was not about to simply _hand over_ the life of Sephiroth to the Uchiha just so the boy could have such a thing on his belt, and inflate his ego beyond measure.

"No Tsunade. I'll allow it. How do you intend to kill Sephiroth though Uchiha Sasuke?" said the Fire Daimyo before Kakashi appeared beside his student with a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"I taught him my original Jutsu the Chidori, which will be aimed at Sephiroth's heart, and kill him upon the organ being pierced by the attack," said Kakashi with pride in his voice that made Tsunade want to vomit.

"Very well. You may proceed Uchiha-san," said the Fire Daimyo allowing a wide enough gap for Sasuke to charge Sephiroth, who was currently being held by two ANBU, and were whispering to him about how he was going to go to Hell for his past crimes along with having the Kyuubi sealed inside his body.

'Not likely,' thought Sephiroth to himself, as he watched Sasuke create the Jutsu, and charge forward with his Sharingan active thanks to Kakashi training him personally after it had been unlocked.

"DIE SCUM!" said Sasuke, as he thrust the Chidori into Sephiroth's chest, and smiled devilishly in feeling the blood of the feared One-Winged Angel of Death's on _his_ elite hands.

"NO!" yelled the group, as they saw blood run down Sephiroth mouth, and yet he _still_ had the strength to smile slightly with blood running down the sides of his mouth.

"I...cannot...die. I...will _never_ become a memory," said Sephiroth, as he began laughing at them, and it became louder with each passing second.

"What the Hell?" said Sasuke, as the body of Namikaze Sephiroth turned to dirt, and mud that fell to the ground while the laughter echoed throughout the village.

The Sephiroth that Sasuke had killed was actually a Mud Clone.

"He went back on the deal! Kill all the prisoners!" said the Fire Daimyo turning to the ANBU and samurai that held the eight down.

Only to find the eight prisoners not there and the those restraining them were down with senbon needles jammed hard into various points in their bodies.

"Lock down the village and find them!" Jiraiya knowing that a group as big as the one Sephiroth had formed couldn't get out of here without going through one of the gates.

"No need. I'm right here," said Sephiroth behind Jiraiya and the Fire Daimyo now turning to face him.

"Kill him!" said the Fire Daimyo in a slightly panicky voice to the Shinobi and samurai around him.

"I cannot be killed by the likes of you," said Sephiroth, as he vanished from their sight, and then reappeared right in front of the now terrified Fire Daimyo.

Behind Sephiroth, all the Shinobi, and samurai that tried to move against him had been sliced to pieces in a ruthless display of his sword skills that created a cloud of blood that soon drenched the platform.

The Fire Daimyo jumped back in fright, as he stared at the monster before him, and saw Jiraiya hesitant to make a move should Sephiroth decide to end the Feudal Lord's life. As for Tsunade, she just had her eyes shut for a moment before looking over at where her Godson was, and then walked away from them.

"Tsunade! What are you doing? Come back here!" said Jiraiya, as he saw the woman walking away, and then look back at him with a foxy smile.

"But I can't _Jiraiya-kun_. Don't you remember? If I interfere, it goes against the order of the Fire Daimyo, and I would _never_ go against an official order given _personally_ by Fire Country's Feudal Lord. Have fun you two. Come on Hinata. Shizune. We're _leaving_!" said Tsunade, as she walked away from this battle, and soon the Leaf since it was clear this place was doing just _fine_ without her being around.

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. Isn't that right Jiraiya? You have scorned my Godmother for the last time and just as I was Jenova's instrument of revenge centuries ago...so will I be Tsunade's against the two of you," said Sephiroth grinning an evil grin that made the Fire Daimyo back up slightly, pissing his pants, and whimpering like a whipped dog.

"Please don't kill me. You have to understand, the people of the Leaf, and Fire Country had to be protected. After what Jiraiya, the Yondaime, and Sandaime Hokage told me I felt there were no other options!" said the Fire Daimyo seeing the glowing deadly eyes of Sephiroth looking back at him that screamed vengeance.

"I see. In that case, you will have to understand that the actions I take against you, Jiraiya, and the Leaf is the only option I feel is the best choice before me," said Sephiroth, as he unleashed repeated flash after flash of light from is sword now moving in a complex pattern no one seeing it could follow, and when the One-Winged Angel stopped...the body of the Fire Daimyo literally _disintegrated_ into bloodstained dust.

"No!" said Jiraiya, as he looked from where the Fire Daimyo had once been standing to where Sephiroth was, and charged the murderer with the full intent of crushing the boy with his own two hands.

"Don't worry Jiraiya-san. You're next. 'Devil's Chains!'" said Sephiroth casting a spell that had once been a Forbidden Genjutsu in the Scroll of Sealing, only young Namikaze had tweaked the illusion so that it couldn't be broken by the victim.

The dispelling of it lied entirely in the discretion of its caster.

As for Jiraiya himself, the instant the spell's name was spoken, demonic looking razor sharp chains sprung up from the ground through the platform, and wrapped around all four limbs of the Sannin. They bound him tightly, piercing his clothing, into his flesh, tearing skin, muscle tissue, blood vessels, and squeezing the arms in the process to cut circulation to each limb the longer they were on him. Jiraiya cried out in pain, as he tried to break it by using the "pain method" by biting his lip until it bled to break, and only after it didn't break did the Sannin realize it _wasn't_ a Genjutsu.

'Now is my chance,' thought Sasuke, as he had been ignored by everyone now, and began to charge up another Chidori, and strike Sephiroth down to prove he was an elite.

"You are foolish Uchiha. And a fool like yourself deserves a fool's _death_!" said Sephiroth quietly, as he instantly threw Masamune at Sasuke the moment he got into the stance to create the Chidori, and pierced the Uchiha through the chest into the pole Tayuya had been tied to during the public spectacle.

"Sasuke!" said Kakashi, as his only eye widened at the sight of seeing Obito's cousin with the blade of the Nodachi pierced through his chest, and now pinned like paper on a wall by a thumbtack.

"Now where was I? Oh yes, _I_ was giving _you_ Jiraiya-san your long overdue just desserts for your actions against me, and my Godmother," said Sephiroth, as he smiled a cruel smile, and walked towards the restrained Sannin currently in unimaginable agony.

"DIE MONSTER! 'RAIKIRI!'" said Kakashi, as he charged forward with the Chidori's big brother, and intended to pierce right through Sephiroth with his attack.

"Barrier," said Sephiroth, as a circular barrier of crystallized energy surrounded the area between him, and Kakashi's arm arching into striking form.

Kakashi for his part was too driven with rage to back down now, as he swore to avenge Sasuke using this attack to finish what his student started, and end the living _scar_ of village if not the Namikaze Clan. He didn't care that this boy was his sensei's son, this boy had been abused by the village for something that wasn't kid's fault, and screwed over by the higher ups that in reality set things in motion leading up to this moment.

What Kakashi cared about was seeing Namikaze Sephiroth dead and his body burned so the twisted soul inhabiting it would go straight to Hell!

When the Raikiri struck the barrier, the shield did its intended job, and Kakashi was sent flying off the platform into a nearby building. As this happened, Sephiroth looked at the still defiant Sannin, and held up his left hand to summon a dark orb that soon bubbled like it was liquid like hot tar with the kanji for "poison" appearing on it.

By this point, Jiraiya's eyes opened at their widest in realization, as he knew what that orb was in Sephiroth's hands, and tried harder to get free though it only created more pain. Not that Sephiroth cared if Jiraiya struggled to get free from the spell he cast since it only caused the victim to feel more pain from trying and the young swordsman was hoping the Sannin _would_ try to get free at seeing the orb. A Seal Master like Jiraiya would recognize his handy work easily, as a painter would recognizing the handy work of a painting, or a builder recognizing something built personally with their own two hands.

For Jiraiya, it was the poison he had sealed into Sephiroth on the boy's last visit to the Leaf, and the Sannin was shocked that so much of the poison had been extracted. Then again, it now made perfect sense to the Toad Sannin in seeing the swordsman being the epitome of perfect health, and no longer burdened with the weakness the poison caused on the body.

'That Haku girl, she must have done something, and help accelerate Sephiroth's recovery!' thought Jiraiya, as that was the only real conclusion he could come up with, and the only one that made sense in his mind.

"I see you recognize your own handy work Jiraiya-san. After Haku extracted half of the poison in my body, I turned it into this orb floating before you, and decided to keep it for the purpose of getting my revenge. You see Jiraiya, I'm not going to kill you with my trusted sword Masamune, as I could not stand the thought of having your blood stain the blade of my weapon, and decided to use _this_ orb to make you suffer," said Sephiroth, as he saw Jiraiya look fearfully at the orb, and then back at him.

"You're a monster," said Jiraiya simply since it was all he could say.

"I know I am Jiraiya-san. I am a heartless monster, who will do heartless things well after today is over, and such actions will be all thanks to you along with the _other_ _heartless people_ responsible for setting things in motion. Now open wide my Grandfather and take your just desserts. I call this little attack number...'_poisonous humility!_'" said Sephiroth, as he grabbed Jiraiya by the throat in a hard enough grip to make the Sannin's mouth open, and then stuff the orb right into the man's mouth.

The "attack number", as Sephiroth had so terrifyingly put it, was far from little due to the thickness of the poison formed into a single circular orb, and entering the body in the most conventional way to directly poison someone. Within seconds of Jiraiya swallowing the orb, the Sannin began to convulse in unimaginable pain, the veins in his body that showed where the poison was, and mapping out where they were traveling began to form. The poison eventually reached the Toad Sannin's eyes, causing them to burn from the inside out, the teeth began to fall out, blood oozing with the poison was running down his nose, ears, and even slowly now through his eyes too. Jiraiya's mouth began to cough up a bloody colored foam before his body began to shake violently in a vicious seizure with the spell on his body only magnifying the incredible pain the man was in!

And all the while this was happened, Sephiroth just smiled, as he watched this agonizing death before him without any sympathy for the man, and enjoying it like a music lover enjoys the sound of an Orchestra Symphony. In a strange way, Jiraiya's death was some crude sadistic masterpiece of theater, and Sephiroth had orchestrated its beginning all the way to the man's literal end quite well.

Sephiroth knew Jiraiya would do _something_ that would weaken, if not try to kill him in the event the two fought each other long before they're first encounter, and the Sannin did not disappoint in that regard. With his body fully recovered, Sephiroth knew this would be _his _moment to return the favor, and the last two conspirators that kick started his abuse had basically _invited _the One-Winged Angel of Death to enter Konoha.

They did everything, but roll out the red carpet, and have a sign saying "Just Try!" in big flashy letters, and neon lights with fireworks shooting into the air.

Fools. All of them!

Walking back to his sword, Sephiroth pulled Masamune from Sasuke's chest, and let the Uchiha's body slump on the floor before ripping off a piece of the dead boy's shirt to clean the blade of the arrogant child's blood. Dispelling his prized weapon, Sephiroth walked down the steps of the platform, and headed towards nearest gate to leave Konoha.

"Sephiroth-sama wait!" said Lee, as he jumped down behind Sephiroth, and kneeled respectfully before the swordsman.

"Yes Lee?" said Sephiroth turning to face the older boy.

"I...I wish to thank you for saving me in the hospital during the Chuunin Exams. Being a Shinobi has been my entire purpose in life and I almost lost it before you visited me in the hospital. Thank you Sephiroth-sama for giving me a second chance," said Lee, as he saw Sephiroth smile, and then put a hand on his shoulder.

"You're most welcome Lee. I just wish your loyalty to the Leaf didn't impede you of the opportunity to join me. Maybe one day you will change your mind, but I can wait until then, and I know when the moment is right you'll know it too," said Sephiroth seeing the shocked look on Lee's face before he turned to walk away.

"What about Gai-sensei? Tenten and Neji?" said Lee wondering if they could come with him should that moment in time actually happen.

"Just like you Lee, it is their choice to leave Konoha," said Sephiroth before he was out of Lee's sight moments later.

When Sephiroth had made it to the gate of choice to exit out of the Leaf, he stopped at the sight of different ANBU, Jounin, and even the remaining samurai standing in front of him with weapons drawn. It was clear to him that they weren't going to let the boy leave just yet, if at all after seeing what he had done to Jiraiya, and the Fire Daimyo before that.

"You're going to die today monster! For every single person you killed, we are going to make you regret ever existing in this world, and send you back to Hell!" said Asuma, as he had been let out of prison thanks to the Councils, and the Fire Daimyo after the failed invasion of the Leaf ended.

"Unfortunately Asuma-san, Hell is not ready to take me, as I have a mission to complete, but I do believe _you_, and the group behind you are long overdue for your journey there," said Sephiroth, as he grinned at the group, and then began laughing at them all.

"Kill him! Avenge our comrades and loved ones!" said Asuma, as the large force of Leaf Shinobi, and samurai now charged Sephiroth with the intent to kill the swordsman.

Unfortunately for them, Sephiroth had other plans in terms of dealing with the group, and those plans involved the summoning of a creature long since forgotten during the last time he was alive centuries ago before the ten-tailed beast roamed the world. Within mere moments, the boy unleashed an incredible amount of chakra that shot up into the sky, and created a massive storm cloud above the village. In the now stormy sky above the Leaf, a roar of an angry dragon was heard, and a great power was felt by everyone.

And it was getting stronger.

The source of this power was in the form of a massive dragon, which crashed behind Sephiroth onto countless buildings, and roared with the power behind it shaking the village down to its very foundation. More buildings collapsed, the ground cracked all around the village, and all five heads of the Hokage Monument itself was now severely damaged.

"Meet my summons. The King of all Dragons. Lord of the Heavens and the Ruler of the skies. I present to you...Bahamut!" said Sephiroth seeing his foes backing up in fear they had not felt since the Kyuubi first attacked over a decade ago, and saw the power of this beast seemed to match if not surpass the fox.

"Run!" said one of the ANBU, as the group tried to scatter, and missed Sephiroth head shaking in disappointment before looking up at the great beast.

"Wipe them out Bahamut. Make them pay for their arrogance and sins. 'Mega Flare!'" said Sephiroth before the massive dragon formed a massive ball of energy in its mouth and fired the blast at the fleeing Leaf forces.

An explosion of white light later, Sephiroth's opposition was destroyed, and created a massive path of destruction leading out of the village. Thanking Bahamut for its actions, Sephiroth dismissed the King of the Dragons, and headed outside of the Leaf to meet up with the others.

(Underground Root HQ)

"So they're all dead," said Danzo, as he saw Sai kneeling before him, shaking slightly in the emotion that was fear, and the leader of the _officially _disbanded organization decided to let it go this time.

Since Sai had seen something or rather _someone _worth fearing.

"Yes Danzo-sama. Both Jiraiya-sama and the Fire Daimyo were killed by Sephiroth while Tsunade has left the village with her assistant Shizune along with her apprentice Hyuuga Hinata," said Sai seeing Danzo smirk knowing the Councils would have no choice, but to accept him as the new Hokage, and bring Root officially back to further bolster the ranks of the Leaf once again.

"And it will take time for the Fire Daimyo's successor to take over at the Fire Country Capital, which will give me time to take the title of Hokage, and put my own plans into action. What of Uchiha Sasuke?" said Danzo, as he saw Sai pause for a second, and knew this meant the boy was going to give an answer he wouldn't like.

"Uchiha Sasuke is dead Danzo-sama. Sephiroth killed him on the platform with his sword to other's chest," said Sai sensing Danzo's anger at this news since the old war hawk had planned to put Sasuke into the Root program and create a new generation of Uchiha's after some "proper conditioning" to make it possible.

"That's unfortunate, but it won't stop me from dominating the Elemental Countries, and being its new hero like the Yondaime. Prepare three Root ANBU squads and find the Village Hidden in the Waterfall to capture their demon vessel to be brought under _my _control," said Danzo, as he knew the only way Konoha could become strong again was to get his hands on _at least _one demon vessel, and Waterfall had one of the stronger tailed beasts in their possession.

"Yes Danzo-sama," said Sai before leaving quickly to find the teams his Master desired for this mission.

Inwardly Danzo was pleased with this turn of events, as all had to do was get one of these vessels under his control, if not properly restrained before going after the others, and then make a team of loyal obedient jinchuriki weapons. A team that would have the power to take down the One-Winged Angel of Death and bring the monster before him to control just like the others.

Then Danzo would rule the Elemental Countries and be its new Emperor.

_No!_ Not the Emperor of the Elemental Countries.

Its new _God_!

_That_ made Danzo smile.

_That_ made Danzo laugh.

After a few miles of walking away from Konoha, Sephiroth heard the laughter echoing around him before turning slightly back towards the Leaf, and smiled knowing it was one of his enemies in the Leaf that stayed in the shadows was the source of it. Despite this fact, Sephiroth couldn't help, but smile knowing that this particular enemy in question would eventually make his move in the future, and the One-Winged Angel would take great pleasure in finishing the Leaf off at the appropriate time.

(A/N: YAY! I updated again. I hope you loved Jiraiya's death since it seemed fitting in my and how I brought out everyone's favorite summons Bahamut out to play for a time. Until next time...PEACE!)


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10-Time Flies

Three years has past since Sephiroth had hit Konoha hard. Three years since the Leaf's Hokage, a one Senju Tsunade, her assistant Shizune, and apprentice Hyuuga Hinata left the village. During that time, Namikaze Sephiroth was a marked man, but given a wide space at first after word got out about the devastation the man caused, and gave him along with the others a chance to plan for the future. The former Sound Shinobi, who had once served under Orochimaru didn't want to leave Sephiroth, as he had been good to them, and would follow him anywhere.

Within a few days of leaving Konoha, the group had met up with Tsunade, Shizune, and Hinata to discus their futures knowing it wouldn't be long before they were all hunted down by the Leaf's Hunter Nin. The problem was _where _do they go and how to prevent Konoha Shinobi or any other Shinobi from another village from hunting them all down like dogs.

The answer came thanks to Haku, as she suggested both groups go to Mist, as they could acquire refuge there after Zabuza had overthrown the Mizukage, and the Demon of the Bloody Mist had become its new ruler. While hesitant to go at first, the group as a whole realized they had no where else to go since Wave was out of the question, and every other village would be out for their blood. Well, except for Suna, but they weren't going to risk it, and decided Haku's idea was the best one they had. Upon arriving to Mist, the group was instantly met by Zabuza, who had successfully overthrown the Mizukage with the help of a redheaded woman, and his secret girlfriend Terumi Mei.

Since then, Sephiroth along with the others had become official Shinobi of the Mist, and fixed the problems had within it. Tsunade ran the hospital with an iron fist and Shizune being her assistant to make sure the fist didn't kill anyone stupid enough to question her. After the previous Mizukage was slain, a look through his own personal effects revealed Yagura, who was the three-tailed Jinchuriki, had a detailed personal journal, which held clues to the madness of his life regarding the Bloodline Civil War, and cryptic messages hidden underneath the writing. References had been made to a pair of eyes that were used to influence the man's behavior, speaking to him before speaking to others, and how deep down the late Mizukage was filled with regret for not being strong enough to fight back against the Puppeteer that pulled his strings from the shadows.

When Sephiroth was shown the journal, he scanned the contents of the book, and found the description of the eyes used against the former Mizukage made the Namikaze draw the conclusion that Sharingan Eyes were used on the man. After consulting with Zabuza, Tsunade, and Mei since she was in Mist's ANBU in order to hide her bloodlines from the Mist Shinobi hunting people for them. The four had determined that there was an Uchiha out there in the Elemental Countries with incredible power, as Tsunade had revealed her Grandfather had a similar power, but with the opposite effect on demons, or Jinchuriki in terms of calming them down. Mei had noticed during her time in Mist's ANBU squads that Yagura had glassy eyes like he was under a Genjutsu and had on more then one time tried to secretly break what she thought was one surrounding him, but the man was unaffected by each attempt, and she shrugged it off in being something that had to do with being the three-tailed Jinchuriki.

Zabuza suggested it was possibly Uchiha Itachi since the man was possibly the only one in existence to have the Sharingan Eyes now and could have the skills to sneak into the Mist to influence Yagura. Sephiroth however, disagreed with that statement since Yagura had long been manipulated before Itachi had mastered the power of his eyes, and thus it couldn't be him. Tsunade had an idea, but was unsure if it was even remotely possible considering the one person she could think was capable of this manipulation was _suppose_ to be dead, and had died fighting her Grandfather.

His name was Uchiha Madara.

However, Sephiroth was sure the man was in fact alive, as the facts had shown the very founder of the Uchiha Clan was not dead like many thought, and had plotted to weaken Mist since the bloodlines in the village prior to the Bloodline Civil War were a threat to the Sharingan. Everything was done in a calculating manner where only one person could possibly benefit from such things and that person was Uchiha Madara.

So for the past three years, Sephiroth had been preparing himself, Haku, and his other subordinates for the battles to come. Fortunately, they had the time to do that, as the Leaf's chain of command was still being figured out, as Kumo had strengthened their own borders during the shift in power, and Iwa was gearing up for a possible fight with the Leaf with the signs of weakness in having so many Shinobi die. Suna was also following Kumo's lead by going defensive too, as it had no reason anymore to stay allied with the Leaf, had no ties to Iwa, and shifted into being a more active Shinobi village. The wrath of Namikaze Sephiroth had put a lot of people on edge, the fact he was once the Kyuubi Jinchuriki after fully absorbing the last of the fox's power into his body made them very nervous, and the fact his associates were also strong too only added to the other villages thinking twice about attacking Mist.

As for Sephiroth himself, on an emotional level of understanding things, Haku had done everything in her power to help him understand love, and got the One-Winged Angel of Death to feel it during their time together. Haku wasn't the only one helping either, as the shy Hyuuga Hinata herself had finally admitted with help from Tsunade, and Shizune that she liked the silver haired swordsman. Telling the Namikaze to his face, even being so bold as to say it in front of Haku, and not wavering in the slightest knowing it could be all or nothing at that point. At first, Haku was against having such help from the beautiful Hyuuga girl, but Hinata would not budge, and even challenged the female ice user to an all out fight with the winner earning the right to be called the Namikaze's lover.

Sephiroth would have none of that.

Sephiroth had seen enough fan girls, lovers, and other relationships fall apart because the male was loved by more then one female. He had seen females fight like wild animals, hurting each other for the one male, when all they had to do was share the male they both wanted, and coexist with each other in a delicate symbiotic balance.

So Sephiroth put his foot down, telling Haku if she couldn't share him with Hinata, then there would be no union between _any _of them, and that would be the end of it. Neither girl wanted that and both promised to share him while secretly making sure the other girl wasn't gaining more favor.

That was six Months ago.

On this particular morning, Sephiroth awoke to what was becoming a routine thing for him, as both Haku, and Hinata were now sleeping on either side of his bare chest. Each woman wearing little in terms of undergarments, as they snuggled up to him with a sense of warmth, and contentment neither girl wished to lose. While they slept Sephiroth stared at the ceiling of his home, which was according to everyone outside, who had seen it had basically stated the place was a mansion, and suspected the idea for the house being so big came from Haku on account of the young swordsman needing to rebuild his clan. The silver haired swordsman wondered how this was even possible for someone like himself to be loved not just by one woman, but two of them, and how they wanted to be with him at all.

He was a bringer of death. Who wants to be tied to him in terms of romance and love?

"Sephiroth-kun," said Haku lovingly, as she kissed his left shoulder, and moaned for his touch.

"One more time. Keep going," said Hinata, as she was in her own dream, and it didn't take a genius to know it was a perverted one.

They did apparently.

'Mother, what would you think of me now, and would you approve of new course I have taken?' thought Sephiroth, as he knew his previous self would have _never _partaken to the pleasures of the flesh, as that version of himself would have considered such things to be meaningless, and a waste of time for him.

Sephiroth blamed the part of him that was Uzumaki Naruto. That little fraction of a soul in him that was his conscious. Telling him to be with those that actually cared and didn't fear his wrath like everyone else did. Sephiroth couldn't argue with that, as few did more then fear him, and it was a rare if not a refreshing feeling to be around someone that was not afraid to be in his presence without the fear of having a sword take their head off.

"Good morning Sephiroth-kun," said Haku, as she awoke from her slumber, and smiled a the swordsman's face.

"And good morning to you too Haku-chan," said Sephiroth in his usual smooth voice that could make women swoon and melt butter.

"Sleep well?" said Haku while still smiling.

"With you and Hinata beside me? Always," said Sephiroth, as he saw Haku's smile now decrease slightly, but it returned a second later, and knew the female ice user _still_ didn't trust Hinata.

Even now, Haku still felt the whispered desire to reach for Hinata's neck, and give it a squeeze until she heard the pleasant "_snap!" _sound that came from crushing someone's throat.

"What are your plans for today my love?" said Haku just as Hinata was awakening from her own slumber.

"Business with your surrogate Father I'm afraid. There is a mission for me that requires my full attention today," said Sephiroth while Haku and Hinata pouted at him.

"What kind of mission?" said Hinata seeing Sephiroth turn his head to her now.

"He didn't say. Another high ranking mission would be my guess," said Sephiroth, as he had been sent on quite a few of them in the past three years learned much in regards to the Akatsuki organization hunting the other Jinchuriki, and several of its members.

A raid on the late Orochimaru's bases helped in giving him information even if it was partially outdated since being collected.

So after rising from their beds, the three showered _separately_, and got dressed before heading to the Mizukage Tower to see Zabuza buried deep in paperwork. The man had clearly realized that the paperwork would forever haunt him too late after becoming the new Mizukage and was seconds away from chopping the desk in half with the papers along with it before they came in.

"Oh thank Kami its you three. I thought Mei had come in with more paperwork for me to sign," said Zabuza, as he secretly suspected Mei was doing this on purpose out of some form of spite to get back at him for becoming Mizukage, and was laughing at his expense in the process.

(With Mei)

The red haired woman was laughing evilly at putting so much paperwork on Zabuza's desk before she sneezed and thought the man was talking about her. Letting out a small sniffle, Mei continued laughing evilly at how she got her lover to become consumed in doing paperwork while _she _got to lounge about reading romance novels, and sipping fine wine.

(Back at the Mizukage Tower)

"You have a mission for us?" said Hinata seeing Zabuza shake his head no.

"Not for you three. Just your boyfriend here. High priority one," said Zabuza, as he threw the mission scroll at Sephiroth, who caught it, and read the contents.

"Two members of the Akatsuki organization are on the move near Kumo. No doubt they are aiming for the other Jinchuriki there. You want me to intercept them?" said Sephiroth seeing Zabuza nod his head.

"Yeah. Since your own tenant has been fully absorbed into you for a short while, we don't have to worry about them targeting you for that purpose, and basically cut lose in taking them down. I've also got reports of the new Hokage Danzo trying to find the Jinchuriki in Taki, as he plans to use her like a weapon, and its rumored he had a means to do that. We don't know how he can since the Uchiha bloodline has been removed from Konoha, but the old geezer wouldn't be trying unless he had a way to do it, and most likely does so. I'm having Kimimaro, Kin, and Kidomaru heading to Taki to warn the girl there of the threat the Leaf represents," said Zabuza seeing Sephiroth nod.

"What about us?" said Haku seeing Zabuza give her a mission scroll.

"You two are going on a mission with Dosu, Zaku, and Tayuya to Snow Country on an A-ranked mission to protect some famous actress. She's filming some movie and there is a scene where they intend to shoot in heavily snow filled area. Don't let down your guard while there since Snow is ruled by a cruel dictator named Doto and will most likely cause you problems with his Snow Shinobi if they are sent to investigate," said Zabuza, as he knew the terrain would give Haku a distinct advantage with the water during the boat ride over, and the ice cold temperatures practically unaffecting her physically.

"When do we leave?" said Hinata knowing the sooner they completed the mission the sooner she could be with Sephiroth again.

"Within the hour. Pack what you need and get ready to move. Oh, one more thing. The actress in question gets flighty in a dramatic fashion so don't be surprised if she tries to run," said Zabuza seeing the girls nod before all three left.

"Oh Zabuza-kun, I have more paperwork for you," said Mei in a sweet voice that Zabuza knew was as sweet as sour grapes.

"DAMN IT WOMAN! STOP GIVING ME SO MUCH PAPERWORK!" yelled Zabuza in irritation.

"THEN PUT A BABY IN ME DAMN IT!" yelled Mei, as she dropped the papers on his desk, and gave him with a look in her eyes that told him to choose his next course of action.

One option was doing countless hours of paperwork.

_OR_...

Or impregnating Mei and being a Father to a kid that will whine all day with its Mother telling him to be a man in raising the child after she used the pregnancy to marry him.

"Hand me that form would you," said Zabuza causing Mei scream in fury and hit him over the head with a paperweight before storming out.

"YOU ARE SLEEPING ON THE COUCH TONIGHT!" yelled Mei before slamming the door shut.

"It was worth it," said Zabuza since he wasn't ready to be a Father and night of sex that would knock up his girlfriend wasn't worth nine Months of her going hormonally crazy with a kid that she'd pin on him to look over.

(Lightning Country-With Sephiroth)

"Okay. Not what I was expecting," said Sephiroth seeing himself surrounded by Kumo Shinobi armed to the teeth and Nii Yugito with them.

"You are trespassing Mist Shinobi," said Yugito stepping forward and seeing he was indeed the infamous Namikaze Sephiroth she had heard about.

"I know. I'm actually here to intercept two Missing Nin high up in what you may have heard as the Akatsuki organization. I believe they are after you," said Sephiroth seeing Yugito stiffen a bit with the Nibi inside of her shaking a little in fear.

"So you know what I am," said Yugito seeing Sephiroth nod.

"Of course. Hard not to. I could sense the Nibi's power before I was halfway here," said Sephiroth seeing the Kumo Shinobi around Yugito become tense.

"How do we know you aren't here to capture me like the Akatsuki are trying to do?" said Yugito seeing Sephiroth smirk at her.

"If I wanted to capture you, then your fellow Kumo Shinobi would be dead by now, and I would have dragged your broken body back to Mist," said Sephiroth before he flared his power to cause every Shinobi around him to tremble in fear.

"I see. I sense you are as strong as the rumors claim," said Yugito while hearing Nibi tell her that Kyuubi had been fully absorbed into the Namikaze and was no more.

"No. The rumors are inaccurate. I'm _stronger_," said Sephiroth simply yet his face had a predatory look to it that made several Chuunin with Yugito shiver.

"You claimed the Akatsuki are coming here for me? Are they after the Raikage's brother Killer Bee too?" said Yugito before Sephiroth shook his head.

"I don't know if they are after him. I do know they are coming here for you. _I _am here to kill them. Nothing more," said Sephiroth seeing the Shinobi around him look to Yugito, who simply stared at the Namikaze, and the swordsman just stared back at her.

"How do I know you will just stop at killing them and not us? We all know what you did to Konoha. How you killed Jiraiya of the Sannin, the Fire Daimyo, the Sandaime Hokage, and Uchiha Sasuke in less then a year. Not to mention the Shinobi after you were leaving that tried to stop you," said Yugito seeing Sephiroth smile a somewhat sinister smile at her.

"They deserved to die. They were betrayers and deceivers all. Why wouldn't I kill them for their actions against me?" said Sephiroth seeing Yugito had no response to that simple question.

"Do we have your word you won't attack Kumo or any of your Shinobi while here while hunting them down?" said Yugito seeing Sephiroth nod his head yes.

"Provided I'm not attacked by any Shinobi while hunting for them," said Sephiroth while Yugito nodded in agreement since she didn't want to fight the Namikaze with his power far surpassing her own.

"Agreed," said Yugito before ordering the others to step away from him.

"Thank you. I sense they are nearby. Leave them to me. They were no doubt assigned to capture you and have the power to negate the Nibi inside your body," said Sephiroth, as he began walking towards the location of the two Akatsuki members, and the group of Kumo Shinobi giving him a lot of space.

"Should we really let him go Yugito-san?" said a Kumo Shinobi of Chuunin rank.

"He could have killed us at any time. Why provoke the Angel of Death's wrath and march to our deaths? Let him hunt for the two Akatsuki members and remove one less threat to Kumo. We need to get back to the village to report this to the Raikage lookout for any more members of the organization," said Yugito simply since the Raikage could setup measure to combat the Akatsuki.

(Sometime Later)

"I hate this! Trucking through a fucking forest. Going all stealth like for this Jinchuriki when we should go in there and spill all the fucking blood in the name of Jashin-sama!" said Hidan, as he walked with his partner Kakuzu to Kumo, where the Nibi Jinchuriki was located, and the one they were assigned to capture.

"Shut up Hidan! We have our orders. Unless you want to tell Pein-sama how you feel about this mission yourself?" said Kakuzu knowing it would shut the man up.

"It won't be necessary to tell this Pein anything...as both of you will soon be dead," said Sephiroth appearing in front of them with Masamune out.

"Holy shit! It's that Namikaze fuck responsible for killing so many Leaf Shinobi and the Fire Daimyo!" said Hidan seeing Sephiroth's blade shine in the sunlight.

"Crap! We don't have time for this. We came for the Nibi. Not him!" said Kakuzu while knowing the bounty on the man's head was massive and was so damn tempted to collect it right now.

"It wouldn't matter. Kyuubi has been fully absorbed into me. He no longer exists," said Sephiroth seeing the two members look at him with surprise.

"What? Oh man! Pein-sama is going to be pissed!" said Kakuzu knowing that the group was going to fall apart real fast when they hear how one of the key components needed for the statue was lost.

"Indeed he will be. I'll spare you his wrath by killing you both and telling him the bad news _myself_!" said Sephiroth, as he rushed forward, and stabbed the money hungry Shinobi in the chest with his sword.

"Not bad. You got _one_ of my hearts. I hope you don't mind I take yours as a brand new replacement," said Kakuzu while Sephiroth saw Hidan bring out his scythe.

"You assume I'm done in attempting to kill you just by stabbing one of your five hearts with my sword. 'Tempest Rage!'" said Sephiroth before sending lightning through his blade into Kakuzu and enjoyed hearing the Missing Nin from Taki cry out in pain.

"Kakuzu!" said Hidan, as he swung his weapon Sephiroth, who turned slightly, angled his arm, and _caught _the weapon below the blade with his free hand.

"Wait your turn Akatsuki member. Your death will come soon enough," said Sephiroth, as he kicked the Jashinist away while still looking at Kakuzu, and the man trying to free himself from the Namikaze's sword.

'He's attacking my hearts with this lightning attack using the sword piercing my heart,' thought Kakuzu, as he felt his remaining hearts spasm in pain, and have heart attacks at the same time.

It wouldn't be long before all of them failed and he died.

"Fucking heretic! Die in the name of Jashin," said Hidan, as he charged in again, and tried to spill some of Sephiroth's blood so he could perform the necessary ritual.

"Barrier!" said Sephiroth in a smooth barely audible voice with the shield made of energy manifested before repelling the Jashinist away.

"Pein-sama will defeat you," said Kakuzu while falling to his knees.

"Really? And you have drawn that conclusion...how exactly?" said Sephiroth in a semi-curious tone.

"He's a God," said Kakuzu simply.

"Really? That's very interesting because the thing is...I'm a God too!" said Sephiroth, as he sliced through Kakuzu with a arc of lightning cutting through the Missing Nin, and through a couple hundred trees in the process.

"You may have been able to kill Kakuzu, but have the blessing of Jashin-sama, and my God will not let me die," said Hidan seeing Sephiroth looking in his direction with an amused expression.

"And I have the backing of Gaia. Goddess and Mother of the world itself. All of nature is hers to command and has blessed me with that very same ability. All the elements bow to me as they would her. Just as you will bow to me before you die!" said Sephiroth seeing Hidan growl at him.

"Never! Die you fucking heretic," said Hidan, who attempted to strike Sephiroth down with his scythe, but the Namikaze easily blocked each strike with his sword, and kicked the Jashinist away.

"Is this it? Is this all the power your God has given you? Pathetic," said Sephiroth, as he leapt away from Hidan, and hovered in the air with a smile on his face.

"Come down here and die you fucker!" said Hidan up at Sephiroth, who formed an orb of energy into his hand, and stared down at the Jashinist.

"I think its time to test your God's blessing in keeping you alive. Let's see how his power fairs against mine. 'Ultima Rasengan!'" said Sephiroth before he dove towards the ground with his arm out with the orb in hand and upon impact with the ground created a massive explosion that shook the ground along with everything around the Namikaze for miles.

Hidan didn't even get a chance to mentally pray to Jashin for help, as he was vaporized in an instant, and there was nothing left to keep the man alive.

All around Sephiroth, a roaring inferno raged around him, consuming the trees, the rocks, and the very ground from his devastating attack responsible for causing the fire. Slowly, the Namikaze walked through the flames, unharmed, burn free, and decided to meet up with his two favorite women to see how they were doing in Taki.

"By Kami. Look at the destruction he caused," said a Kumo Shinobi of Jounin rank, as he kneeling before a cliff's edge with Yugito, and seeing the damage Sephiroth caused.

"I see. Nibi is cowering in fear of him. Those two chakra signatures we sensed down there a moment ago are gone. Not surprising given the attack," said Yugito before she stood up and kept her senses on the Namikaze.

"Where is he headed now?" said the Kumo Jounin knowing they would have to hustle to Kumo to report to the Raikage soon.

"He's heading West. Away from Kumo. He's sticking to his word," said Yugito while she sensed the other Kumo Shinobi around her sigh with relief.

"Good. That guy scares the crap out of me," said Kumo Jounin while the others agreed with his sentiment.

"No argument there. Come on. Let's return to Kumo and report what happened. We took a big enough risk not doing that in the first place to see the Namikaze fight," said Yugito before she and the group took off.

They had no intention of stopping for a second time.


End file.
